If Only They Could: A Rikato Fic
by Digimodified
Summary: UPDATE: FINALLY COMPLETED! Rika and Takato have been through a lot together. They've saved the world more than once, and have always remained best friends, through thick and thin. But is there really nothing more there? Are they really only friends, or do they want more? My first fic, so go easy on it.
1. Decision

Takato could feel his legs giving out as he ran along the street. He was late for school again, after forgetting to set his alarm clock the night before.

_"Oh man, Ms. Asagi is gonna _kill _me for being late again,"_ was all he could think about, as he weaved between seemingly innocent people. Takato knew, however, that this was all a grand scheme to delay him as much as possible, and ultimately make even later. In his mind, they were _deliberately_ going this slowly, there was no other reason.

He turned the final corner, and mentally sighed as he saw his school in the distance. As he crossed the road, he found himself blocked by a grey-suited man of average height and build. He had greying hair, and walked with an air of importance. Takato recognised him immediately as his principal, Mr. Kurosawa.

"Ah! I mean, hello Mr. Kurosawa," Takato said, desperately trying to cook up an excuse as to why he was over an hour late for class.

"Mr. Matsuki, are you aware that you are almost two hours late for school, for the second time this month?" The principal asked, before noticing that Takato, in fact, wasn't alone.

Takato was followed by his reptilian friend, Guilmon, who had returned to the real world almost a year earlier. He was a crimson Digimon with large claws, small wing-like ears, and a black Digi-Hazard symbol on his white, insatiable belly. Ever since the D-Reaper incident, Digimon were pretty much common knowledge, but there were still many people who held onto their fears of even the friendly ones.

Mr. Kurosawa, unfortunately, was one of those people. Ever since his first encounter with Guilmon, he'd been terrified of all Digimon.

"Takatomon, I'm hungry, did you bring any bread?" Guilmon asked. Takato wondered how it was possible for something of Guilmon's size to consume so much food in so little time. He was constantly hungry.

"Not now, Guilmon. I'll give some bread later," Takato assured the childish Digimon.

Mr. Kurosawa looked like he was going to piss his pants. "W-well, Takato, I g-guess you'd better get t-to class. Y-you wouldn't want-t to keep Ms. Asagi waiting," he stammered, before turning and walking away, clearly distraught at the sight of the red dinosaur.

Takato sighed. _"Is he _ever _gonna get used to them?"_ he thought, before running off to class, Guilmon in tow.

As he approached his classroom, Takato tried to cool down, so he didn't look too exhausted as he walked in. It didn't work as well as he had hoped though. He still looked like he was going to pass out as he walked through the door.

"Ah, Takato, I was beginning to worry. Did you sleep well?" Ms. Asagi said dryly, clearly not happy about Takato's tardiness in the last few months.

"I'm – sorry – Ms. – Asagi," Takato wheezed. He looked around for an empty spot, but instead, caught the eye of Rika, one of his best friends. Takato thought he saw something flicker across her face.

_"Did she…smile at me?"_ Takato thought to himself, but quickly dismissed the idea as he sat down next to Kazu, another friend of his.

"What did I miss?" Takato whispered to his friend.

"Not much, just some boring review stuff, nothing to worry about," Kazu replied, equally as quiet. Takato sighed in relief.

The rest of the school day seemed to pass Takato by. He wasn't even trying to listen, just to make it _look _like he was listening. Sometimes Takato would peek to the back of the room, and see Terriermon trying to hit Henry with small balls of paper. The closest he got was hitting Jeri, who sits right in front of him. She turned around, looking Henry straight in the eye, and Henry turned red as Rika's hair.

_"Ooookay, that was weird," _Takato thought, but then he turned and saw Rika looking at him. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second before Rika turned away, her face becoming almost as red as Henry's. _"And that's even weirder."_ Takato thought.

* * *

><p>As the final bell rang, the Tamers ran out of class and headed for the hideout. Takato finally broke out the bread, but Guilmon ate it all before anyone could get a piece. After a few minutes of talking about the school day, everyone sort of settled into their routine: Takato and Henry would chat in the hideout, Guilmon and Terriermon would play, Kazu, Kenta, Guardromon and MarineAngemon would hang around and do whatever, Calumon would wander between the groups in his never-ending search for cream puffs, and Rika and Renamon would lean against a tree, seemingly oblivious to their surroundings. Jeri would sometimes come and play, but most of the time she had to go home.<p>

"I don't know Henry, I really think something's up with Rika," Takato explained to his friend.

"Well, why don't we go ask her then," Henry responded.

"No! We can't do that! She'd…well…" Takato said, feeling his cheeks turn red.

"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you liked Rika," Henry said. He hadn't really meant it, he was just trying to mess with Takato, but Takato took it seriously.

"I do not! I just…you know…worry about stuff like this. What if she's hurt?" Takato stuttered, turning an even darker shade of red.

"I'm not _that_ stupid, Takato. I think you like her," Henry teased.

"I…well…I never…maybe…I just…" Takato stammered, knowing he'd been found out.

"Well, why don't you just talk to her?" Henry asked.

"Because it's kind of a lost cause, don't you think? Why try if there's no chance?" Takato responded, hanging his head low.

"What do you mean no chance? Takato, you need to stop selling yourself so short, or you'll never be able to pack up the courage and-"

Suddenly, the tamers' digivices beeped, signifying a 'Wild One.'

"We'll finish this talk later," Henry said, "Right now, we have bigger fish to fry."

"Yeah," was all Takato could say. The tamers rounded up their Digimon, and they were off to fight the wild one.

* * *

><p>"There it is! Let's get 'em!" shouted Takato.<p>

"_Wow, Takato's kind of cute when he takes charge like thi-Did I just call gogglehead 'cute?' There is no way I'm falling for goggleboy!"_ Rika thought to herself as she ran toward the digital field. She sealed the thought in question away for examination later, as she put her 'Game Face' on. She adjusted her sunglasses, as did everyone else (except Kazu, who had forgotten his), and they entered the field, coming face to face with a wild Digimon, looking somewhat like a dragon.

"Dorugamon, Animal type, Champion level. Attacks are Power Metal, and Cannonball," Rika said, reading the information off of her D-Arc.

"Alright, piece of cake. Guilmon, attack!" Takato ordered.

**Pyro Sphere!**

The fireball hit Dorugamon square in the chest, knocking it off-balance.

**Bunny Blast!**

Terriermon shot a green ball of superheated air at the wild one, knocking it into a building.

**Diamond Storm!**

Renamon sent hundreds of sharpened leaves at the Dorugamon while it was stunned.

As the smoke cleared, the tamers and Digimon saw that the Dorugamon was perfectly fine!

"Okay, this might be a little tougher than I thought," Takato said through gritted teeth.

Suddenly, the wild Digimon started to glow.

"It's digivolving!" Rika shouted.

** DIGIVOLUTION**

**Dorugamon digivolve to…DoruGreymon!**

The purple dragon had now transformed into an enormous red dragon, now towering over the tamers and their Digimon.

"DoruGreymon, Animal Type, Ultimate level. Attacks are Metal Meteor, and Bloody Tower!"

"**Bloody Tower!**" The beast shouted as it attempted to spear Guilmon through its large horn. Guilmon only barely managed to get out of the way.

"Guilmon!" Takato shouted, running toward his partner.

"Guys, I think it's time we biomerged!" Henry suggested.

"Alright then, let's do it!" Rika shouted.

**BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION**

** Guilmon Biomerge to…Gallantmon!**

**Gallantmon Mode Change to…Crimson Mode!**

**Terriermon Biomerge to…MegaGargomon!**

** Renamon Biomerge to…Sakuyamon!**

The biomerged trio dodged out of the way of the incoming red tail, as they prepared to attack.

**"Mega Barrage!" **MegaGargomon let loose hundreds of explosives from all over its body, sending them careening toward the monster.

**"Fox Drive!" **Sakuyamon leapt into the air and sent an enormous ball of blue flames at DoruGreymon.

**"Crimson Light!" **Gallantmon lunged toward the wild Digimon with his Gungnir.

As all three attacks connected, the DoruGreymon disintegrated into data, seemingly defeated. The trio dedigivolved into their Rookie and human forms, as the data started to glow.

"What's going on? Didn't we beat it?" Takato asked, confused.

The data glow brighter and brighter, until they saw something emerge from it.

**"Metal Meteor!" **The data let loose a final attack before vanishing. A ball of solid iron, roughly the size WarGrowlmon went hurtling toward the tamers.

As the tamers closed their eyes in anticipation of their destruction, they were surprised to find it never came. Instead, the iron sphere was vaporised by another attack.

**"Justice Burst!" **shouted Justimon, as he destroyed the Metal Meteor attack.

"Oh great, it's Mr. Perfect," Rika groaned.

"Happy to see you too, Rika," Ryo countered after dedigivolving. "I thought you'd be a little more grateful I just saved your life.

"Oh please! I had him right where I wanted him. I was about to…spring my trap, before _you _showed up," Rika spat.

"Well it looked to me like you could've used the help," Ryo teased.

Rika turned bright red. "Well…I just…leave us alone, okay?"

_"Man, those two are bickering like an old married couple,"_ Henry thought.

"Fine, just don't come crying to me when you're in trouble again," Ryo said, before turning and leaving.

"Uh, Rika, are you okay?" Takato asked nervously. Rika had started shaking, and it looked like steam was going to come out of her ears.

Rika turned to him, and gave him a piercing glare. "I'm fine, just leave me alone," she said through gritted teeth, before turning to leave. "Come, Renamon," she said.

As they walked away, Henry turned to Takato. "Okay, maybe give her a while to cool down before you…you know."

"Henry," Takato said, looking defeated, "there's no chance, okay? She's the Digimon queen, I'm just-"

"Just what? Just Takato? Just a loser? You need to get some confidence, man. Ever since Jeri turned you down, you've been, well, different."

"Different how?"

"It's not much, but…you just don't seem quite as happy, you know? I'm just worried about you man."

"Well don't okay?" Takato started getting angry. "I'm perfectly fine, I just need a little time to cool off, that's all."

Henry sighed. "Fine then. If you don't tell her, I will."

"What?"

Henry looked at Takato deeply. "You _need _to tell her. If you don't, you'll spend the rest of your life wondering what would have happened."

Takato thought about it for a while. He didn't want to admit it, but Henry was right again.

"Okay, I'll figure out a way to tell her. Man, she's gonna kill me."

Henry smirked. "Well, you never know. Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

Takato turned toward his house. "Yeah, yeah. See you tomorrow," he said, before running the rest of the way home.

As he snuck up to his room, trying not to disturb his parents, Takato thought about what Henry said.

_"No, I shouldn't tell her. What if it ruins our friendship? What if she just gets mad at me, like she always does? Then again, she has seemed to lighten up lately. No, I still shouldn't. There's no chance she feels the same way, so why bother?" _Takato quickly changed into his pyjamas, and jumped into bed. _"Why isn't this stuff ever easy?" _Remembering back to when he had asked Jeri out only worsened his situation. Takato and Jeri had agreed to stay friends, but Takato was still a little…muffed about the way it had played out.

On the other side of town, Rika was having problems of her own.

_"Ugh! Why does Ryo have to do that? I'm glad he saved us, but does he have to be such a jerk about it? I know he's just doing it because he likes me, but I've made it pretty clear I don't like him back, so why doesn't he just leave me alone? I wish I had somebody to talk to about this stuff, someone who would understand. Takato might understand, but, he's pretty thick. It'd take too long to explain it to him. Wow, I must be going soft. Did I actually consider telling gogglehead about my problems?" _Another voice, sounding suspiciously like Jeri's popped into her head. _"It's because you like him, isn't it?" _The voice teased. _"I…uh…no I don't!" _Rika mentally shouted to the 'intruder.' _"You like him, you like him, you like him!" _Jeri chimed. _"Well, maybe, but it's not like he'd like me back! He's so stupid, he probably doesn't even know what love is!"_

"Rika, are you alright?" Renamon asked, noticing the serious look on her partner's face.

"Yeah, I'm fine Renamon. I'm just thinking about…stuff."

"Anything in particular?"

"Uh…no!" Rika defended, turning a suspicious shade of pink.

Renamon simply smirked and dropped the subject, allowing for a silent walk home.


	2. Realization

**I should probably do a disclaimer this time. I own Digimon and all of its subsidiaries, so if you see somebody making a Digimon fanfiction without my explicitly written permission, it's illegal. Okay, I don't own Digimon, they're owned by…Somebody else. Somebody a lot richer, and probably more handsome, too…anyway, here's chapter two.**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 2<p>

"Takatomon, wake up."

"…."

"Takatomon, I'm hungry."

"…Hnh?"

Takato opened his eyes, seeing at first only a large, red blob. As his eyes focused, he realised that Guilmon had jumped on top of him, and was trying to wake him up. Takato tried to make a sound, but found he was too tired, and he looked up sadly into the eyes of his Digimon pal, knowing exactly what would come next.

"TAKATOMON!"

"AAHHH!" Takato screamed, jumping up, pushing the red mass off of him, and nearly falling out of his bed, ears ringing. "What is it?" Takato asked groggily.

"Is it time for breakfast yet, Takatomon?" Guilmon asked, oblivious to the fact the Takato was still very tired.

"Not yet, Guilmon, I need more sleep," Takato said dismissively, to try to get Guilmon to go back to sleep.

Guilmon wasn't finished, though. "But Takatomon, you've been sleeping for a long time," he whined.

Takato rubbed his eyes and looked at his alarm clock. It was two o' clock in the afternoon.

_"Wow, I slept a long time," _Takato thought, _"Then again, I was exhausted from that battle yesterday."_ "Okay Guilmon, let's get some food," Takato said to the scarlet dinosaur.

"Yay! Bread, bread, bread!" Guilmon cheered.

_"Man, even after all this time, Guilmon acts like such a baby sometimes," _Takato mused.

* * *

><p>Laying on her futon, Rika appeared to be spending a quiet afternoon reading a magazine, but Renamon knew otherwise.<p>

_"Something is bothering her, and I wish she would tell me,"_ thought Renamon, keeping watch from the shadows. _"It's her decision, however. If she wants to tell me, she will. Although…"_

"Rika, what is the matter? You've been quiet for hours," Renamon finally broke the silence.

Rika broke out of her trance-like state, and looked to the yellow fox. "It's nothing," she said, "I'm fine."

"Rika, you clearly aren't fine. Something is worrying you, and maybe I could help. You can't keep bottling it up like this, or you'll revert back to what you were before you met Takato and the others," Renamon said, concern creeping into her normally monotone voice.

"I'm fine, Renamon," Rika started getting frustrated. _"Why does she want to know so badly? It's not like I'm in any real danger or anything,"_ she thought. "I'm going for a walk," she announced to her parents, before turning back to her partner. "Please, just drop it. It's nothing you need to worry about," she said to Renamon, before exiting her home.

Renamon gave it a good two or three minutes before following behind Rika, keeping to the shadows so as to not be noticed. Even if she wanted to be alone, there could be danger out there. Plus, maybe Renamon could find out more about what was troubling her if she snooped, just a bit.

* * *

><p>After eating their fill (although Guilmon could never truly be full), Takato went off to look for Calumon, in order to give him a box of home-made cream puffs. He could only imagine the look on his face when he saw them. Takato smiled at the thought. Along the way, he saw Rika, leaning against the outer wall of the hideout.<p>

_"That's weird," _Takato thought, _"Rika never comes here unless she's with one of us."_

Takato also noticed that Renamon wasn't with her. _"Okay, something must be up,"_ he concluded. As he approached, Rika took notice.

"What do you want, Gogglehead?" Rika said, not even attempting to hide the ire in her voice.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. I'm just looking for Calumon, to give him these," Takato showed her the cream puffs he had baked especially for the small Digimon. "What are you doing here? Where's Rena-"

"I just wanted to be alone, okay? Sheesh, shouldn't I be allowed to be alone, once in a while?" Rika snapped.

While Rika's face was made of stone, and therefore Takato couldn't get any clues from it, her eyes were like an open book into her mind, for the most part. It took a lot of practice to see past the pain and anger, but Takato looked into her violet eyes and saw something new. _Fear._

"Rika, what's wrong?" Takato asked.

"Nothing! Why does something have to be wrong for me to want to be by myself?" Rika shouted.

"Okay, okay! Fine, I'll leave you alone," Takato said, somewhat dejectedly. With that, he turned and walked away, continuing his search for the little cream puff lover. _"Man, what's gotten into her?"_ he pondered.

_"Hmph! Stupid gogglehead. I just want to be alone, is that too much to ask?" _Rika thought.

_"The problem is, you don't want to be alone."_ 'Jeri' said. _"You want to be with Takato, you're just too afraid to let him in."_

_ "What? N-no I'm not!" _Rika spluttered. _"I just – I – Um..."_

_ "There's nothing wrong with having feelings once in a while, Rika," _'Jeri' teased. _"You need to talk to him. Maybe he feels the same way."_

_ "Of course he doesn't!" _Rika screamed internally. _"I've been a total bitch to him ever since he first met! How could he possibly love me back-"_

_ "So you admit it?" 'Jeri' prodded._

_ "Yes! Fine, I do! Now will you leave me alone!" _Rika yelled.

'Jeri' giggled. _"Nope. I'm not done yet. Not until you tell Takato how you feel. Admitting it to yourself is a big step Rika, but you're a long way from the finish line."_

Rika let out a long sigh. _"The problem is, the odds of Takato feeling the same way are astronomical. There's no poi-"_

_ "There's _always _a point, Rika!" _'Jeri' asserted. _"Tell him you love him, and maybe you'll find out he feels the same way!"_

Rika knew she was beaten this time. _"Fine, I'll tell him." _She told 'Jeri.' _"Now how should I? I mean, I can't just walk up to him at any time, he's always around friends. I need to get him alone to tell him, if I can pack up the courage. Do you-"_

Rika was cut off by her D-Arc beeping. "A Digimon!" she said, to no one in particular.

"Renamon, it's time for action!"

Renamon instantly appeared beside her. "Very well, let's go," she said, and with that, they ran towards the source of the disturbance.

* * *

><p><em>"Man, what's gotten into her?" <em>Takato pondered.

Continuing the search for Calumon, Takato and Guilmon walked in silence, something that Guilmon thought was quite odd.

"Takatomon?" he asked innocently.

"What is it, boy?" Takato responded.

"Are you okay? You seem distracted," Guilmon said worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've just got a lot on my mind right now."

"Like what?"

"Did Rika seem…I don't know, different today? I mean, she's always been kinda bitchy on a bad day, but today, she seemed…in pain. I don't really know how to describe it.

"She did look sad. Did you hurt her, Takatomon?" Guilmon was confused, not really getting the meaning behind Takato's words.

"W-what? No, I didn't hurt her, I'd never do that," Takato defended.

"Do you like Rika, Takatomon?" Guilmon asked.

Takato turned as red as Guilmon, although Guilmon didn't really know why. "W-well, yeah. I like Rika, she's one of my best friends," Takato stammered, not knowing exactly how to convey his feelings to a child-like Digital dinosaur. "It's complicated, Guilmon."

Guilmon turned away, as if to say, "Okay, I won't ask anymore," which caused Takato to let out a sigh of relief. They walked in silence, until Guilmon piped up again.

"Takatomon?" he asked again.

"What is it boy?"

"Umm, can I have a cream puff?" he asked, as though butter wouldn't melt in his mouth.

"…Sure boy." Takato reached into the packet and pulled out a small round ball of dough, filled with cream. "But only one, okay? These are meant for Calumon." He clarified.

"Okay Takatomon."

Guilmon gobbled up the cream puff, as Takato returned to his deep thought.

_"Should I tell Rika? I mean, it's not like she feels the same way, so there's no real reason to, but still…rrr, I'm so confused! Why isn't this stuff ever easy? If I tell her, she'll just get mad at me, I think, and if I don't-"_

"SURPRISE!" A tiny white and purple Digimon jumped up and latched itself onto Takato's face. "Eskimo kisses!" it shouted happily.

"Hey, we found you Calumon!" Takato exclaimed. "I wanted to give you these."

Takato handed the package to Calumon, and watched as he opened it. "CREAM PUFFS!" He shouted wildly. A lightning speed, he began scarfing down the cream puffs. Takato watched the Digimon eat until his D-Arc started beeping.

"Uh-oh! Guilmon, we've got trouble," Takato said, "let's go!"

"Okay, but can I have a cream puff, Calumon?" Guilmon asked.

"Sure Guilmon!"

"Thanks Calumon!" Guilmon thanked the small Digimon, before turning and running after his partner. "Wait for me Takatomon!" Guilmon panted, as he tried to catch up. Guilmon wasn't exactly designed with speed in mind after all.

"See you guys later!" Calumon yelled after them, before returning to his enormous box of cream puffs. _"Man, how am I gonna eat all of these?"_ he wondered.

* * *

><p>Arriving at the Digital Field, Takato, Guilmon, Henry, and Terriermon looked up and saw Rika and Renamon staring down the massive blue winged beast towering before them.<p>

"Nice of you to stop by," Rika said nonchalantly. "I was beginning to worry you weren't gonna make it."

"Momentai, Rika," Terriermon said cheerfully. "We wouldn't miss this for the world!"

"Stupid piece of junk, why can't I get any information on this thing?" Rika steamed. "There! AeroVeedramon, Holy Dragon type, Ultimate Level. Attacks are V-Wing Blade, Dragon Impulse, Twister Sabre, Magnum Crasher, V-Breath Arrow, and Wind Guardian."

"Let's get to work then!" Takato yelled. "Guilmon, digivolve!"

"You too, Renamon!" Rika followed.

"Can I, Henry?" Terriermon asked, for once awaiting his Tamer's command.

"Go for it, Terriermon!" Henry replied.

**DIGIVOLUTION**

** Guilmon Digivolve to…Growlmon!**

** Renamon Digivolve to…Kyubimon!**

** Terriermon Digivolve to…Gargomon!**

"Alright! Let's get this guy!" Takato cried.

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER TWO~<strong>

**So, what do you think? Good, bad, abysmal, amazing?**

**I tried to keep away from OOC moments, but I'm still new, so a few probably crept in there, even if I can't see them.**


	3. Complication

**Sorry I took so long to get this out. I've been completely bogged down with homework, as well as some family issues. Anyway, up until this point, I've pretty much been making it up as I go along, but I've got pretty ambitious plans for this fic, especially since it's my very first. Let's just hope I have enough self-motivation to follow through with my plans. So, without further ado, here's chapter three.**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 3<p>

"Attack!" Rika shouted to Kyubimon.

**"Fox-tail Inferno!" **Kyubimon shot several blue fireballs from her tails. The attack hit AeroVeedramon in the chest, but the beast shrugged it off like it was nothing.

**"Pyro Blaster!" "Gargo Laser!"**

Growlmon and Gargo joined in, launching powerful attacks at AeroVeedramon, but both attacks had as much effect as Kyubimon's did.

"They didn't even leave a scratch!" Takato exclaimed.

"Alright then, time to bring out the big guns!" Henry reached for his D-Arc.

**"Digimodify!"** Henry swiped a Blue Card through his D-Arc. **"Matrix Digivolution Activate!"**

Gargomon started to glow.

**MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION**

"**Gargomon, Digivolve to…Rapidmon!"**

A tall, green android now stood where Gargomon was not moments ago. Rapidmon looked up at the towering blue dragon, and took aim.

**"Rapid Fire!"** Rapidmon fire several missiles at the behemoth, each hitting their mark with incredible speed and accuracy. As the smoke cleared however, the monster was still unfazed.

"No fair!" Rapidmon shouted.

AeroVeedramon started to absorb energy, preparing for an attack.

**"V-Breath Arrow!" **AeroVeedramon fired a v-shaped beam straight at Rapidmon with blistering speed. Rapidmon barely had time to process what had happened by the time the beam blasted into him, sending him flying into a nearby building.

"Rapidmon!" Henry shouted, clearly concerned for his partner. "Are you alright?"

"…Rrr…I'm okay, just a little tired, that's all," Rapidmon struggled to say, clearly downplaying what he was really feeling.

Rika was now very concerned for her own partner's well-being. "Kyubimon, watch out! He's a lot more powerful than he looks!"

AeroVeedramon opened his wings, and pushed off from the ground, soaring into the air. He flew up, and up, and up.

"Where's he going?" Takato wondered aloud.

Suddenly, the blue Digimon turned around and started flying straight toward Growlmon and Kyubimon. A bright light enveloped AeroVeedramon, turning him into an enormous white arrow.

**"V-Wing Blade!"** AeroVeedramon dove towards the Digimon, glowing profusely. The two land-bound Digimon barely had enough time to get out of the way of the diving beast.

"He's too strong!" Kyubimon exclaimed.

"Then we'll have to be stronger!" Rika and Takato said in unison, followed by both of them turning slightly red as they reached for their Blue Cards.

**"Digimodify! Matrix Digivolution Activate!"**

** MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION**

**"Growlmon, Digivolve to…WarGrowlmon!"**

** "Kyubimon, Digivolve to…Taomon!"**

The two newly-digivolved partners now stood in the place of their former selves, poised to attack.

**"Atomic Blaster!"** WarGrowlmon shot a large red beam at AeroVeedramon.

**"Talisman of Light!"** Taomon sent a large Sanskrit character towards the behemoth.

Both attacks hit AeroVeedramon with staggering force, forcing the beast backwards a bit, however it still wasn't enough to destroy it.

**"Dragon Impulse!"** AeroVeedramon retaliated by firing several dragon-shaped beams at WarGrowlmon, one after the other. WarGrowlmon raised his Chrome-Digizoid Blade arms in defence, deflecting the beams in every direction, nearly hitting Taomon.

"Watch it, Gogglehead!" Rika seethed.

"It's not my fault!" Takato responded, hoping not to be blasted to smithereens himself.

"Yeah, well, he's _your_ creation," Rika said, extending the argument.

As Takato and Rika continued bickering, Henry stepped in to try and break it up, but to no avail. Finally, Rika stepped away from the other two to cool down for a bit. Henry and Takato turned toward WarGrowlmon, who had locked arms with AeroVeedramon. WarGrowlmon seemed to be getting the upper hand, when suddenly, AeroVeedramon pulled back slightly, throwing WarGrowlmon off balance. AeroVeedramon then lifted WarGrowlmon up in the air and hurled him into Taomon, putting both of them down for the count. AeroVeedramon then turned toward the tamers.

**"V-Breath Arrow!"** AeroVeedramon shouted. The wild Digimon then let out an enormous v-shaped beam. The blast moved with extreme speed…

…straight toward Rika.

"Rika, watch out!" Rika heard Takato shout.

As Rika turned and saw the enormous blast of energy hurtling towards her, time slowed to a snail's pace. She looked and saw Taomon out of commission, as well as her friends' partners. She found herself glued to the spot, like a deer in the headlights, unable to get out of the way. She shut her eyes tight and waited for death.

She waited, and waited, and waited, but she never felt the blast. Instead, she was hit from the side by an extremely powerful thud, sending her flying out of harm's way. She opened her eyes mid-flight, and saw Takato had forced her out of the way of the beam, putting himself in the blast-zone instead. Her eyes widened as she fell, watching as Takato take the full impact of the attack. Takato's eyes shut from the pain, as he cried out in agony.

**"AAAAUUUUGGGHHH!"**

Rika had a piercing ringing in her ears, and her vision was severely blurred as she regained consciousness. The beam then suddenly stopped, and a large explosion of energy followed. As the smoke cleared, and Rika found her bearings, she looked and saw a large crater thirty meters from where Takato stood moments ago, the pavement turned up all the way to it. Only the tips of Takato's shoes could be seen from where Rika was lying now, and they weren't moving.

"Ta…ka…to?" Rika strained to say, when out of the corner of her eye, she saw a large purple Digimon approaching.

**"Double Impact!"** said the familiar demon lord Digimon, as he arrived on the scene. Beelzemon pulled one of his Berenjena out of its holster and fired a shot at AeroVeedramon. The shot hit AeroVeedramon with enough force to knock it down, disabling it temporarily.

"Hey, what's with all the long faces?" Beelzemon said haughtily, as he approached the Rika and Henry, who had helped Rika up, and was slowly walking with her toward Takato's crater. "I'd have thought you two would have been happier to see me! Hey, where's Taka-"

Beelzemon then saw what Rika and Henry were heading for. He saw a familiar goggle-wearing brown-haired boy lying in a, enormous crater, unconscious.

"Oh, man," Beelzemon said, starting to get angry, "I should have gotten here sooner. If it weren't for me, Takato might still be up and kicking! RRRRRAAAAAAAGGGHHHH!"

Beelzemon's right arm started to glow, changing into the Corona Blaster. Beelzemon then took aim at the rising AeroVeedramon.

**"Corona Blaster!"** Beelzemon shot an enormous energy blast at AeroVeedramon, punching a hole straight through its chest. As data leaked out the sides, AeroVeedramon let out a final roar, before being deleted, and absorbed by Beelzemon.

With the immediate threat caused by the Wild One out of the way, Rapidmon, Taomon, and WarGrowlmon dedigivolved, turning their full attention towards their fallen friend.

"Takato! Takato, wake up!" Rika shouted, forcefully shaking Takato.

"...ngh…" Takato stirred slightly, before trying to open his eyes. They felt like they weighed a ton each, but he kept trying, before finally seeing bright colored blobs in his blurred vision. As he strained to focus, he tried to move, but to no avail. "Ri…ka..?"

"Don't talk. Save your strength," Rika said, fighting back tears.

"…Ri..ka," Takato croaked. "What…hap-pened?"

Rika no longer had the strength to keep up her emotional barrier, so her tears rained onto Takato. "You idiot! Why did you do it?" she sobbed, "Why did you save me like that?"

"Be-cause, Ri…ka, I…" Takato tried to say. "I… I… I…"

"You what?" Rika asked, eyes clouded by tears.

Takato started to dissipate. Small bits of him were starting to break off, and fly into the sky.

"He's… data?" Henry's eyes widened at the sight.

As Takato faded away, he tried one last time to say it.

"I... I… I… lo… I lo…" was all he could muster before he faded completely, his data floating away.

"TAKATO!" Rika screamed. She couldn't move. She was too encumbered with sadness to budge. The others were crying too, over the loss of a good friend. Guilmon didn't understand what was happening. Not even Renamon could hide the sorrow. Rika looked up, and saw that a small dot was still floating in front of her, a piece of him.

"Ta…ka…to?" Rika croaked, her voice giving out.

She reached out and grabbed the bit of data, clutching it close to her heart. It was all she had left of him, and she wasn't ever going to let it go.

_Never…_

* * *

><p>"Rika, is that you?" Rika's grandmother called from the kitchen. "Dinner was an hour ago. Where were you?"<p>

"There was an emergency. I didn't have my cell phone with me, I'm sorry." Rika said half-heartedly, before walking into her room and shutting the door behind her. "I'm going to bed!" She shouted to her grandma. She immediately dove into her futon, letting the tears fall once again.

It had been a few hours since it happened. Shortly after breaking down in the middle of the street, Henry and Renamon helped her to her feet, and walked with her to the Matsuki bakery. She couldn't shake the memory of Mr. and Mrs. Matsuki, crying in their living room after closing the bakery early. She had left an hour later, wandering home, a shadow of her former self. It's like something inside of her died after it happened, and she didn't know what she would do without him. As she made her way home, Henry, Renamon and even Terriermon tried to console her, but it was too early for that. She refused to continue on, at least for now.

Rika almost didn't hear her mother knocking on her door. She quickly wiped the tears from her face as to avoid answering more difficult questions, and she answered the door.

"What is it?" Rika said, hiding the pain in her voice.

"There's someone on the phone for you," her mother said calmly. "It sounds important."

Rika took the phone and shut the door. "Hello?" she said.

"Rika, it's me," Rika recognized the calm, stern voice of Mitsuo Yamaki. "I understand what you're going through right now, but we need to talk. Can you come by the Hypnos building around noon tomorrow? And bring that bit of data with you."

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER THREE~<strong>

**Well, that's chapter three. What do you think? I hope it was worth the wait. I'm thinking about changing the name of the story to something more appropriate. Originally, it was going to be a short, two shot fic, but now, I'm not sure if the title still fits. What do you guys think?**


	4. Confusion

**Alright, here's the next chapter. Before I begin, I just want to say thanks to everyone for their reviews. It's really reassuring to see that I'm not completely hopeless when it comes to writing. A quick warning: I don't think I possess much skill when it comes to demonstrating the passage of time. It comes into play a little bit here, and I don't know if I really get that across in the fic. So without further ado, here's Chapter Four!**

**Oh, and I still don't own Digimon, but I'm working on it, you'll see!**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 4<p>

"We've got a wild one!" Riley Ootori announced.

"Send a tracer," Yamaki ordered, flicking his zippo back and forth.

"Bringing a tracer online," Tally Onodera said, "It's closing in on the tar-"

"It's enormous!" Riley exclaimed, "I haven't seen one of this size since the Vikaralamon incident!"

"Deploy the Yugoth program," Yamaki demanded, flicking his lighter shut and gripping it tightly, "don't let it get away!"

"Yugoth deplo-" Tally started to say, before acquiring an unsettling piece of new information, "Yugoth failed. Target identified as AeroVeedramon. Target is bio-emerging!"

_"I guess this one's up to them," _Mitsuo thought, _"I just wish there was more we could-"_

"We've got massive power fluctuations on site! Something _big _is going on down there," Riley reported.

Yamaki gritted his teeth in anger. _"Why must those kids always step in? Why is there never anything we can do from this end?"_ Yamaki wasn't looking for time in the limelight, he just didn't like that no matter what they did, it always seemed that the burden was put onto the tamers. _"The children… I have to do something - something to help them. If only-"_

Yamaki continued flicking the lighter open and closed, calming him, shutting himself off from the others, as he tried to come up with something that could help.

_"I could…but then…and why would…or maybe-"_

"Target destroyed!" Riley announced, breaking Yamaki out of his state. "Data is dissipating back into the Digital world. We've got the analyzer running."

Yamaki was left alone with his thoughts again. He pondered possible ways to assist the Tamers in their ongoing struggle, but he was unable to come up with a suitable answer. An hour went by, without a single word spoken between the three Hypnos agents. Riley and Tally deciphered the information sent back by the data analyzer, while Yamaki continued flicking his lighter back and forth, thinking.

"We've got an analysis of AeroVeedramon's data!" Riley announced, "But…there's more."

"More? More of what?" Yamaki enquired.

"There's more data than just AeroVeedramon's. The analyzer's got nothing. I have no clue what it could be," Riley concluded.

_"And the plot thickens,"_ Yamaki thought. "Send a response team down to the site ASAP. I want scans for abnormal data variations." Yamaki ordered, before adding, "And get Janyuu Wong on the phone, I want to see if there's anything else.

"Would you like to take the call yourself-" Tally began, before being cut off by their telephone, which Riley quickly answered on her headset.

"Hypnos, Riley speaking...I'm sorry, I can't understand you…what do you mean, gone?" Riley tried deciphering the intent of the message being delivered by a frantic Mie Matsuki. Takehiro Matsuki then took the phone, and spoke with only a little more clarity. "What? Hold on, what do you mean? Completely? How do you-" Riley said, feeling a rush of tears coming on. "Hang on; I'll give you to Yamaki. Sir, line two, and you're not gonna like it," Riley said dejectedly.

"Yamaki answered on his private telephone, flicking his lighter. "This is Yamaki, go ahead," he said to Takehiro.

"It's Takato…He's-" Takehiro tried to say, before breaking down into tears as well.

Yamaki grew frantic as well. "What happened? Mr. Matsuki, I need to know!"

"He's…He's dead." Takato's father said.

Mitsuo dropped his lighter, hearing the metal case clatter on the floor. "Dead? I, I don't know what to say. I-I'm sorry." He finally said. "I need to go now. Goodbye." Yamaki hung up the phone, stood up, and smashed his fist into the wall. "I can't believe I let it get this far! I should have…but then…and I don't…but how? How did he…Get me Janyuu on the phone, now!" Yamaki yelled.

"Hang on…No answer," Riley finally reported.

Yamaki's fists clenched. "Damn it! Get me the Nonaka family!"

"…No answer either. Something's happening." said Tally.

Yamaki, Riley and Tally worked furiously trying to contact either of the Tamers' families, trying to find somebody who knew what happened, but to no avail. They worked, and worked, and worked, until finally,

"Sir, we've got results from Response Team C's scanner!" Riley said gloomily. "There seems to be nothing untoward, minus Shinjuku Park being reduced to rubble-hang on! We've also got a response from the Wong residence!"

"Patching you through now, line two," Tally said, using what little composure she had left.

"…Hewwo?" answered Suzie Wong, Henry's younger sister.

"Hi there, Suzie. Could you give the phone to your dad right now? It's very important," Yamaki asked, trying as hard as he could to keep calm.

"He said not to disturb him. He's talking to Hendwy and mommy wight now." She said obliviously.

"It's very, very important that I talk to him right away. Could you please put him on anyway, Suzie?" Yamaki said.

"Okay Mr. Hypnos," Suzie said innocently.

Yamaki couldn't help but smirk at that last comment.

"…Hello Yamaki. Have you heard?" Janyuu Wong said dismally.

"I have. That's the reason I called. I wanted to know if Henry knew anything more," Mitsuo said, treading lightly so as to not seem insensitive. "I understand how hard it must be for him right now, but if he has any information at all, it could be useful to us."

"I'll pass you over to him. He's still pretty shaken up, but he's doing better than I would be."

"Thanks, Janyuu. I'm sorry it came to this."

"You and me both."

"…Hello?" said a very miserable-sounding Henry.

"Henry, it's me, Yamaki."

"Yamaki, he-"

"I know. I am so sorry. If you are able, I'd like you to tell me what happened."

Henry then recounted the battle from thirty minutes ago. He made it to AeroVeedramon's final V-Breath Arrow attack, before breaking down completely for a minute. Composing himself, he finished the story.

"Wait, I don't understand. Takato turned into…data?" Yamaki asked, confused.

"Y-yeah. I don't understand it either. One minute he was there, the next…" Henry let some more tears drop from his eyes. "I-I think…Rika has some."

"Has some what?" Yamaki asked. "Some of his data?"

"Yeah. As it-as he floated away, she grabbed a bit of him. I think she still has it," Henry said.

"Henry, I know you've been through a lot, and I can't even begin to comprehend what you must be feeling right now, but could you come in tomorrow at noon?" Yamaki asked softly.

"S-sure."

"Thank you Henry. Thank you so much."

Henry passed the phone back to his father. "So?"

"Get Shibumi on the horn, you guys need to take a look at this," said Yamaki. "No matter what it takes, get him here tomorrow at noon."

"Okay. It just so happens he's staying with us right now, so that shouldn't be a problem," Janyuu added.

"Great. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodbye."

As Yamaki hung up his phone, he turned to Riley and Tally. "Any response from the Nonaka's?"

"Yep. You want me to patch you through?"

"Absolutely."

"…Hello, Nonaka residence," came the soft albeit hoarse voice of Rumiko Nonaka, Rika's Mother.

"Hello, this is Mitsuo Yamaki of the Hypnos Corporation. Is Rika in, I need to talk to her?" Yamaki replied.

"Well, she's here, but she's been locked in her room for the last hour, crying," Rumiko said.

"It's very important. Could I please speak to her?"

"Well, sure. Hold on a moment."

Yamaki heard knocking, followed by a faint voice.

"There's someone on the phone for you," Rika's mother said calmly, "It sounds important."

Mitsuo heard a door shut, followed by a deathly quiet voice through the receiver. "Hello?" Rika said.

"Rika, it's me," Yamaki said calmly, or as calmly as he could in the situation. "I understand what you're going through right now, but we need to talk. Can you come by the Hypnos building around noon tomorrow? And bring that bit of data with you."

"…Okay…" Rika said quietly, the sorrow leaking through her cracked defenses.

"Rika…'m sorry," Yamaki said solemnly, before hanging up the phone again. "I should have done something; I should have been able to stop it. I-"

"You did everything you could, Mitsuo," Riley placed a hand on her boss' shoulder. "You should get some rest. I'll hold down the fort for now."

"Thanks." Yamaki picked up his lighter, grabbed his coat, and left.

As he walked home, Yamaki reflected back on all the times he failed, on all the times he didn't know what to do, on all the times he had a chance to lend a hand, but couldn't. It nearly drove him mad just thinking about it. As he slumped down on his bed, he couldn't shake this feeling-this feeling of responsibility. He didn't know how or why, but he felt like Takato's blood was on his hands. And so, in the solitude of his small apartment, Yamaki quietly, and resolutely, wept.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, what do you think? I really hope the passage of time is conveyed, and it doesn't feel 'tacked-on.' Also, if this chapter seems a little short, it's because it is. I started writing more, but I thought this was a more appropriate point to split the two chapters. The next chapter should be up (Hopefully) pretty soon though, like in a day, two max.<strong>


	5. Examination

**Here's chapter five. If everything goes well, this should be up at most just a few days after chapter four.**

**I still don't own Digimon yet by the way. Thanks for asking.**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 5<p>

Rika handed the phone back to her mother, and returned to the isolation of her bedroom. She lay on her futon, simply thinking. Renamon simply knelt by her and stroked her hair, comforting her.

"It's okay, Rika. Everything's going to be okay," Renamon repeated, partly to calm Rika, partly to calm herself.

* * *

><p>"Henry, we've gotta go."<p>

"…"

"It's almost noon, Henry. He wanted us there at noon."

"…I can't…"

"We have to," Janyuu said to his distraught son, "I can only imagine what you must be going through, but right now we have to be strong. Takato would've wanted it that way."

Henry could only muster a light "okay" before pulling on his coat, and heading out the door, when he was called back by his mother, Mayumi.

"Henry, there's someone on the phone for you," she said.

"Henry took the phone and answered. "…Hello?"

"Henry? Is that you? What happened yesterday? I can't get a hold of Takato," came the oblivious voice of Kazu.

"Kazu, I can't…Takato, he-" Henry couldn't finish the sentence. He hung up the phone, and returned to his father, heading for their car.

* * *

><p>Henry, Janyuu and Terriermon walked into the Hypnos lobby to find Rika already there, leaning up against the back wall with Renamon. Surprisingly, Renamon was the first to acknowledge their arrival, while Rika stood there, separated from reality. Henry saw her eyes were very red, and their usual violet shine seemed to be gone, replaced with a dull, purple flicker. Renamon looked as she normally did, although she did seem to be a little lower than usual, as if the gravity of the situation was literally pulling her down. Janyuu went to find Yamaki, and Henry walked toward Rika.<p>

"Rika?" Henry said softly.

Rika snapped out of her trance. "Yeah?" she said coldly.

"Are you alright?"

Rika turned away from the blue-haired boy. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine," prodded Henry.

"Well, I am, okay?" Rika snapped, making Henry jump. She then put her headphones

back in, and proceeded to tune out the world again.

Renamon turned to face Henry and Terriermon. "She's had a tough time dealing with current events. She tries to be strong, but even she can't hide her emotions always."

Henry looked to Rika, and saw a few small tears streaking down his friend's face. "But what can we do to help her?"

Renamon lowered her head. "The only way we can help her is if she wants to be helped. Otherwise, she's on her own."

Henry turned to Terriermon. "How are you doing with all of this?" he asked anxiously.

Terriermon looked his partner in the eye. "I don't know," he said, "I'm having a hard time understanding it, really."

Henry sat down in a fold-up chair next to Rika and Renamon. He couldn't take his mind off of Takato's parents, his friends, Jeri, and most of all Guilmon. He could only imagine what they were going through right now. Henry looked down at his watch, which read 11:52. He lay his head down on the table, and moped.

_"How could I let this happen? I should have done something, I was right there, and I did nothing."_

Henry's mind filled with memories of all their times together. He remembered the battles, he remembered the adventures, he even remembered the simplest things, like hanging out at Rika's house, or baking bread at the Matsuki bakery. All the while, he thought of Takato and Rika. As he recounted more and more memories, he realised just how well the two fit together, even if they didn't see it for themselves. Rika would be a little less rough when Takato was there, and Takato seemed just a little happier too. It wasn't noticeable unless you were looking for it, but it was there, and Henry knew it. He thought of telling Rika the truth: that Takato had feelings for her. He didn't know if it would help her or hurt her, but he knew she needed to know.

Henry got up from the table, turned to Rika and-

"Henry, Rika. I'm glad you could make it, and all I can do is offer my deepest condolences to you both," said Riley from behind the two. "Could you guys come with me? You too, Renamon and Terriermon," she said.

Rika put her headphones away and walked silently next to Riley, with Henry pick up the rear with the Digimon.

_"I guess it'll have to wait,"_ thought Henry.

* * *

><p>Rika, Henry, Renamon and Terriermon were led into a room none of them had seen before. The room was filled with electrical equipment almost wall-to-wall. A loud mechanical buzzing muffled the sounds of computers and researchers hard at work. Yamaki and Janyuu stood next to a fairly cylindrical machine with enormous cables running from the back of it into the wall. A small terminal was plugged into it, spitting out technical jargon a researcher seemed quite interested in.<p>

"Rika, Henry," Yamaki recognized the two. "How are you holding up?"

"I've been better," Henry said.

"Fine," said Rika in a particularly strong voice, although her eyes immediately gave away the game. She was hurting, and everyone could see it.

"I can't imagine what you four are feeling right now," Yamaki treaded lightly, "but Rika, I understand you've acquired something. Henry said it was a piece of Takato's…data. Do you have it with you?"

"I brought it, just like you asked," Rika said stoically. Henry only now realised that Rika's left hand was clenched, and he suspected it contained the last piece of Takato.

"May I see it for a moment?"

Rika lifted her hand and opened it, revealing a small, white glowing orb of data floating just above her clammy palm.

Yamaki stepped over to it and reached out. His hand was almost touching the data, when Rika's grip enclosed around the orb once again.

"Rika, I need to analyze this. To see if it's really-"

"It's him." Rika said firmly. "I feel it."

"Even so, I need to analyze it, along with all of you. It's why I asked you all here, rather than just her," Yamaki explained. "I need to get information on the four of you."

Henry raised an eyebrow. "What for? You've already examined us before, what's changed?"

Yamaki flicked his lighter open. "I have a theory. I want to see if you two are just like Takato is-was." Yamaki said.

"I think it would be best to check, just in case. Maybe there's a way to reverse it," said Gorou Mizuno, also known as Shibumi, walking towards the group.

Rika still refused to let go. She gripped the data like a vice, while holding back tears. Suddenly, she felt a soft, warm paw rest on her shoulder.

"Rika," said Renamon soothingly, "it's okay."

Renamon didn't exactly have a way with words, but Rika, and the other Tamers for that matter had become quite adept at hearing the meaning of her words, rather than the words themselves.

"…okay." Rika released her superhuman grip, and allowed Yamaki to put the piece of data into a small container, and then insert the container into the enormous machine behind Janyuu and Shibumi.

"Now, if you'll follow me, we're going to start analysing the four of you," Shibumi spoke to the Tamers and their partners. The group of seven walked over to a hospital-like room, with four beds set up with matching machines next to them, all sorts of cables running out of either end.

"Alright, lay down on the beds, and we'll get started."

The next hour and a half was spent with several wires hooked up to various places on their bodies (including a cable for each of the Tamers that attached in an area that involved no shortage of discomfort for either of them), answering small questions, such as "Have you felt any different, physiologically?" Rika endured it all, but by the end, she was on the verge of tears. She could barely hold on any longer before Shibumi finally said, "Okay, I think that's everything."

The four were unplugged, and sat up on their beds. They felt a little weird, but they all attributed it to being lying down for the past hour and a half, and they're just a little woozy. The seven walked back out into the main lobby. Rika tried her best to hide her chagrin, to no avail.

"We'll probably have what we're looking for within a week, so keep an ear out for our call," said Shibumi.

Rika turned to leave, but was stopped by Yamaki. "Rika, take this back."

Yamaki handed her Takato's data. "Keep it safe," he said, before turning and heading back into the research center.

Rika gripped it tightly. She turned to walk out, and found she was face-to-face with Renamon and Henry.

"Rika, it's okay to be upset. We want to help you, but we can't if you don't want to help yourself," said Henry softly.

Rika felt her eyes welling up again. "I'm fine, okay? I can take care of myself!" Rika stormed out of the building and began the long walk home on her own.

Renamon, Henry and Terriermon just stood there, staring out at Rika.

Renamon turned to Henry. "Takato…He meant a great deal to her," she said slowly. "I don't exactly understand the concept of love, but from what I can gather, It's what she felt toward him."

"Really?" Henry turned to Renamon. "Takato, he felt the same way about her."

Terriermon slumped down on Henry's head. "Why doesn't stuff ever seem to go well for us?" He mused.

* * *

><p>"Rika lay down on her futon, gripping the glowing orb as tight as she could. The light emanating from it shone through her fingers.<p>

_"I'll never let go of you,"_ she thought, her mind slipping into slumber.

"_Never…."_

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER FIVE~<strong>

**Well, here's the next chapter, and it's only a day late, which is impressive coming from me! I think I'm only going to start writing on weekends, from now on, depending on the workload I get from school. I need time for homework, plus time to plan for the hostile takeover of Digimon. I think I'll leave the title as-is, since it started out fitting my ideal plot, then I stopped just making it up as I went along and thought up a real(ish) plot, and it now fits in a completely different way than expected. Anyways, what do you guys think? Any suggestions are welcome.**


	6. Frustration

**Well, here's the sixth chapter. This one was kind of a pain in the ass to write. I just couldn't get into the mindset to write this one for ages. I knew what I wanted to write, but I didn't know how to compose it. Oh, and I still haven't had the chance to nab the Digimon license, but I'm almost there. By the time this story's done, I just may hold the rights to the entire Digimon Franchise, and all its subsidiaries. Hey, a man can dream, can't he?**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 6<p>

Rika sat quietly on the bench in her backyard, facing the small pond. The water glistened in the moonlight, silhouetting the small stone bridge that crossed it. The stars danced in the night sky, and the noises of the nearby streets were seemingly barred from entering her "Sanctuary." Her head lay on the shoulder of the boy next to her, while she hummed the tune to a song she'd heard on the radio a few days previous. Her eyes drifted to the trees near her estate. She saw Henry and Jeri, walking along the sidewalk, holding hands, not a care in the world. Rika continued humming, but her eyes drooped. Eventually, she couldn't hold on any longer, and she stopped humming and started drifting off.

"You're not falling asleep yet, are you?" Takato Matsuki said softly. Rika could hardly believe it, the boy she loved, sitting next to her, keeping her in a tight embrace. "Can you keep humming for just a little bit longer? I love hearing your voice."

Rika couldn't stop smiling. "Sure. I'll keep going as long as you want."

"Thanks."

Rika started again where she left off, and felt Takato pull her a little bit closer to him. He rocked back and forth with her in his arms. Rika let out a soft sigh as she finished the song. _"It doesn't get any better than this…"_ she thought.

Suddenly, they heard a noise, coming from the forest, followed by the screams of Jeri and Henry. Takato jumped up. "Henry! Jeri!" he said aloud, before running off towards the forest.

"Takato, wait!" Rika tried to keep up, but he was just too fast for her. "Wait! Please, wait for me! Don't go!" She shouted to him. Takato darted into the woods, followed closely by Rika. They weaved between trees, leaped over large roots, but Rika couldn't keep up. Takato slowly vanished from sight, Rika running after him. Rika soon came to a clearing, where she saw Henry and Jeri being grasped tightly by a giant AeroVeedramon.

"Let them go!" Takato shouted to the beast. Guilmon materialised by his side, and they started to glow.

**BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION**

**Guilmon, Biomerge to…Gallantmon!**

Gallantmon lunged toward the blue monster with his Gram lance, and pierced it through the chest. Data slowly started leaking out the sides, and AeroVeedramon faded away. Gallantmon landed next to Rika, and dedigivolved before her eyes. As Takato emerged, Rika ran up and squeezed the daylights out of him.

"Don't do that! I was worried about you," she said, on the verge of tears.

"Rika…I love you," Takato said in reply. "I have since the day we met, and I will 'til the day I die."

Rika hugged him for the better part of five minutes, before releasing him from her hold.

"I love you too," she leaned in to kiss him. She closed her eyes, and-

-she felt nothing. In fact, she felt cold.

She opened her eyes, and found herself in an icy wasteland. She looked off in the distance, and saw Takato. She ran towards him, and as she got closer, she saw another figure. Soon, she was close enough to see the knife that now pierced Takato's heart. Rika's eyes widened in horror. Takato fell to the ground, writhing in agony, the knife still in his chest. Rika fell to her knees out of shock. She crawled on her hands and knees to Takato, and saw blood leaking from the wound. Soon, she saw blood coming from his mouth, then his eyes. Soon enough, blood was eking out of every pore in his skin. Rika's tears fell like a downpour.

"Rika," Takato croaked in anguish. Rika looked to his eyes, once red, were now gray and lifeless. "Why didn't you help me?"

"I-I tried!" Rika cried out. "But I couldn't! I failed you, Takato, when it mattered most! I wasn't there for you! I'm so sorry, Takato! Just don't leave me! Please…"

Takato took his final breath, and looked at Rika. "I…Forgive…You…" before letting his head down, and shutting his eyes for the last time.

Rika screwed her eyes shut and screamed to the heavens. She screamed and screamed and screamed, until the sound lost all meaning to her. She could not find any more pain in her shrieks. Her tears stopped falling, but the pain remained. She wanted to cry, but she could no longer. She looked up from Takato's motionless body, and saw his murderer had not moved. Takato's attacker then moved towards Rika, desiring another kill. Rika couldn't move; her body was almost cemented in place. The attacker pulled the knife from Takato's chest, and took aim at Rika. Rika watched in horror as she poised for attack, and then-

Rika shot up in her bed with a screech, eyes wide in fear. Renamon was looming over her, her yellow fur radiating heat onto a now cold Rika. It wasn't a normal kind of cold; it was a deathly, unnatural cold. Rika looked up at her normally calm Digimon partner. Rika burst into fresh tears, and Renamon pulled her into a comforting hug. Rika was still terrified of the nightmare, and she was shivering, sobbing, and sweating. Rika sobbed for what seemed like hours, but was only in fact a few minutes.

Rika heard a knock on the door. "Rika?" said Rumiko, Rika's mother, "are you alright in there?"

Rika couldn't bring an answer to her lips, she just continued sobbing. Rumiko opened the door, and rushed to her crying child. "Rika…It's alright, let it out. Let it all out." She said soothingly, in a way only a mother could. For the next hour, the three just sat there, comforting each other.

* * *

><p>A few hours later, Henry Wong was dressing himself for school. He wanted to stay home, but he needed to remain strong, and he couldn't let everything crumble around him. He needed something to keep his mind off the subject at hand, and he thought school was the way to do it.<p>

"A-are you sure you want to go to school?" Janyuu said cautiously. "I could write you a note, or call the school for you-"

"I need to go, dad," Henry said calmly, but sternly. "It's for the best that I don't let everything go to shambles."

"I understand," Janyuu said softly, "you're a lot more like your Grandfather than you think, you know."

Henry pulled his backpack over his shoulders. "I'll see you when I get home. I love you!" He called back as he shut the door. Terriermon poked his head out of the backpack, gasping for air. Neither of them said anything for at least fifteen minutes, before Terriermon pulled himself out of the backpack, and lay himself on Henry's blue hair.

"How do you think the others are holding up?" he asked. Henry didn't want to think about it; otherwise he might break down again. Fighting back more tears, he said to his partner "I really don't know, Terriermon." Henry continued to walk in silence, trying to keep his mind off of Takato's family, Guilmon, Rika and Renamon, Kazu and Kenta, Jeri_…_

Henry arrived at the front door, and took a deep breath before walking in, dreading the questions he would inevitably have to answer, the faces he would get from the other students, the faces of his friends, trying to deal with what happened-if they already knew, of course.

Henry creaked open the door, and saw Ms. Asagi was still absent. He checked his watch, which read 7:12. _"Where is she? Class is gonna start in a few minutes." _Henry thought to himself, as he took his seat behind Jeri. Kazu and Kenta leaned over to Henry.

"Dude, what's going on?" Kazu said. "You sounded weird on the phone, and then you hung up on me. What's up? Where's Takato?" he prodded.

Henry turned to face Kazu and Kenta and saw that Rika had indeed turned up for class. She walked in with a slouch in her stature, her hair slightly disheveled, and her eyes red, sore and baggy. She was a mess. Henry turned back to the two boys.

"Well, he…He's..." Henry couldn't bring himself to say it. He tried one more time, before seeing Ms. Asagi walk in, just as the bell rang. Her books and papers were hanging loosely from her standard Teacher's Booklet, her hair in disarray, and her eyes almost as red as Rika's.

"Hello, class. I'm sorry I'm late." Ms. Asagi said shakily as she held back tears. "I-I have some news for the class before we begin. O-over this weekend, an enormous beast appeared in Shinjuku Park. Tak-kato, Henry, and Rika, along with their Digimon, fended off the monster, saving the town. B-but, in the battle, Takato-" Ms. Asagi broke down completely, leaving the entire class (with the exception of Rika and Henry) mystified and worried. Ms. Asagi pulled herself together before continuing. "Takato pushed Rika out of the way of a grave attack. He…died in the blast, s-sacrificing himself to s-save h-her." Ms. Asagi then slumped her head down on her desk, sobbing. The class stared in disbelief, unable to comprehend what they were told. Kazu, Kenta and Jeri looked to Henry, their eyes watering.

"He…he's…_dead_?"

All Henry could do was slowly nod his head, before slumping down on his desk much like Ms. Asagi. Jeri burst into tears, with Kazu and Kenta following suit. The rest of the class turned very sombre, but not much past that, unsure of what to do. Eventually, Ms. Asagi rose from her seat, and continued the lesson, albeit slowly.

The next few days followed this routine. They would arrive, they would mourn for a little while, and they would work at a slower pace than usual, as if Takato's death physically impeded them all from working any harder, Ms. Asagi included. Everyone was brought down, even the students of other classes. The flag was only raised to half-height, in honor of Takato. After school ended, the Tamers would just go home, instead of heading to hideout like usual. There was just no point anymore, it seemed. When Henry got home, he would just mope around, bleeding away the hours before bedtime, where he could weep in solidarity. Rika would lock herself in her room and spend entire evenings crying, with Renamon, her mother, and her grandmother consoling her. She would repeat the same thing over again. "It's okay. Everything's going to be okay. We love you. We're here for you."

* * *

><p>One particular afternoon, Rika was walking home from school, when she was stopped by a hand, put to rest on her shoulder. She spun around to see who it was.<p>

"Rika," said the spiky-brown-haired boy standing in front of her. "I…I'm sorry." Ryo was standing with Jeri, who was close to tears, as they all were.

"What do you want, Ryo?" Rika spat, adding as much venom as she could into her voice without breaking down again.

"Rika, it's okay to be sad. We all are. We just want you to be okay," he retorted calmly, not giving to his own anger.

-**SMACK-**

Ryo took a step back, wincing in pain and rubbing the now pink spot on his cheek. "I don't need your help!" Rika shouted at him, "I'm doing fine on my own, so why don't you just fuck off and worry about yourself!" Rika turned and ran away, tears falling to the street beneath her shoes. She ran and ran and ran, until she finally made it to her grandmother's estate.

She burst open the door and locked herself in her room, sobbing loudly. After a minute, she heard a knock at the door.

"Rika dear, are you alright?" her mother asked worriedly. "Someone called for you earlier. I told them you'd call back."

Rika shouted back to her mom through the door. "I don't want to talk to anyone right now, okay?"

"It was Hypnos. They said it was urgent."

Rika immediately stopped crying. "Hypnos?" she asked herself. She dashed out of the room, grabbed the telephone, and returned to her room. She quickly dialed the numbers, and heard the calm voice of Riley Ootori on the other end. "Hypnos, Riley speaking."

"It's Rika," Rika said as calmly as she could. "I was told-"

"Rika, could you come in tomorrow? We've got something to show you," Yamaki interrupted her. "You're gonna want to see this."

Rika's hand started shaking as she held the phone. "W-what's this about?" she asked carefully.

"I'm afraid I can't talk about this over the phone," Yamaki said robotically. "How's noon, tomorrow? Riley, what day is it? Friday? Yeah, does tomorrow at noon work for you?"

"It works," Rika said cheerlessly. "I'll be there."

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER SIX~<br>Well, I think this one turned out quite well, and I hope you guys agree. If you have any suggestions, questions, or complaints, feel free to write a review, letting me know what they are, and possibly how to improve on them. Don't be afraid of hurting my feelings, they won't be hurt, trust me. Next chapter shouldn't take too long, so maybe a week or so. Then again, the gap between my chapters has never been very consistent, has it? Anyway, I hope you like it. Thanks for reading, thanks for reviewing, and especially thanks for liking it. It's reassuring to say the least to read such good reviews. Thanks for everything guys. See you soon(ish)!**


	7. Deterioration

**Hello again. Before we begin, I'd just like to thank everyone for their great reviews. Keep 'em coming! I still don't own Digimon, but I only need seven percent more stock, and I'll have fifty-one percent. The goal is within reach, ladies and gentlemen.**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 7<p>

_Nothingness…_

It was all he could feel. Nothingness. As it turned out, feeling nothing actually _felt_ like something, but it was nothing. He felt no pain, he felt no emotion. He only felt nothing. He could think, but it was very difficult not to think of nothing as well. He couldn't see, he couldn't move, he could only be. He thought, and thought, and thought until he ran out of stuff to think about, except for one thing, unless you include nothingness, in which case he could only think of two things: Nothingness, and the inescapable feeling something was missing. He searched and searched, but nothing filled something with nothing, where something was previously. He had started out knowing nothing. He thought for a while, until he found memories. He discovered he was Takato Matsuki, a boy from Shinjuku. Son of a baker, and tamer of a Digimon. He searched longer and found friends: Henry, Kazu, Kenta, Jeri, Guilmon, Renamon, Terriermon, Calumon, Impmon, Ai and Mako, Guardromon, MarineAngemon, but he also remembered _nothing_. Something was there, but it got replaced by nothing. He searched and searched, and unearthed other memories, like memories of Leomon, but he failed to find the something he knew he once had. It was like a jigsaw puzzle with one missing piece. It made him feel nothing. His search brought him through his adventures to the Digital World, the battle with the D-Reaper, but he needed more. He kept going, until he found his way to the end of his memories. He was destroyed by the AeroVeedramon, but _why?_ Why was he blasted? He remembered being far out of the way of the attack, and it perplexed him to no end, why was he killed? A fragment of a memory finally surfaced in his thoughts. He was protecting…what? What was he protecting? He couldn't comprehend it; he couldn't ask anyone, he couldn't find anyone, he couldn't do anything; he could only _be_. He analysed every moment of every day, trying to find something-anything that would help him understand. He found small, incomplete bits of memories, but they only brought him closer to an answer, while still keeping him as lost as before. He remembered more of nothing. He continued to do nothing, in the place where he wasn't, feeling nothing calling him – inviting him to join it, to become nothing.

* * *

><p>For the first time in the history of the universe, Guilmon wasn't hungry. In fact, he refused to eat anything. He may not have been as intellectually matured as everyone else, but he wasn't stupid. At first, he denied it. He forced his mind into believing he was just on a trip. <em>"He'll be back soon,"<em> he would think to himself, _"don't worry."_ He soon came to grips with it however, and he didn't know what to feel. He was sad, of course – Takato was his creator, and his first and best friend. On the other hand, he had never had something like this happen to him before. He felt like all the happiness in the world had disappeared. He wanted to cry, but he didn't really know how. He had cried in the past, but he'd never really thought about it. Now, he would just sit around, hoping his old friend would come back to him. The days would pass him by like minutes, and some days he would sit there, motionless, except heading downstairs occasionally to eat. While he wasn't hungry, he could still never pass down food. Takato's parents were also like this. The bakery remained open, but no customer got more than a forced smile, and an emotionless "Have a nice day." The nights would be filled with tears for the three of them, but then the mornings would return, and the cycle would continue.

* * *

><p>Rika lay awake in bed. Her headphones were over her ears, but her disc player had run out of battery life hours ago. Now, she was using them to isolate herself from the noises of normal life. She didn't want to admit it, but she was in desperate need of company. She looked to her desk, and she saw the small bit. She still didn't really understand what it was, but she <em>knew <em>it was Takato. She knew it. She was strangely attached to the small dot. Not just because it was her last piece of Takato, her last glimmer of hope, but it felt…_familiar_, in a way. Admitting to herself that this would be another sleepless night, she got up and sat herself at her desk. Renamon watched her from the corner, wondering what she was doing at this late an hour. Rika was fixated on the data. She stared at it for the best part of twenty minutes, before she rose from her seat and entered her closet, searching for a gift her mother had given her a few months ago. Her eyes lit up as she finally found the item. She examined it in the moonlight. It was a steampunk locket in the shape of a heart. Her mother had found it online, and thought it would go well with Rika's 'outfit' of sorts. Rika liked it, but she was hesitant to wear it in public, since jewellery wasn't really her thing. Rika opened the locket, revealing it to be empty. She placed it down on the desk, and reached for the piece of data. The data glowed at her touch, something Rika had never noticed before. The orb was radiating heat, actually making her palm sweat a little bit. She smiled a little as she placed the dot into the small locket, closed the lid, and put the locket around her neck. She returned to her bed, and finally drifted to sleep. The locket, enclosed in her soft grasp, now glowed with the light of her friend. It glowed with the light of hope.

* * *

><p>Fog hung low over the streets of Shinjuku as Henry and Terriermon trudged toward Hypnos headquarters. Henry's father had headed in early, leaving Henry to get there on foot. The smell of damp grass wafted into Henry's nostrils, with a hint of misery and regret. Terriermon was clutched in Henry's arms, saying nothing. A car passed by, hitting a puddle and spraying the two with water (although they were already thoroughly soaked so it didn't make much of a difference), but Henry just kept on walking. His mind was racing: <em>"What could this be about? Are we data too? What if he can bring him ba-no, I can't get my hopes up like that."<em> Henry cried silently, thankful the ice-cold rain hid his tears. Henry stopped as her arrived at the front door. He placed Terriermon on the floor in front of him.

"Terriermon?" Henry asked with a quavering voice. "Please promise me something."

"Anything."

"Promise me you'll never leave me. I can't bear to think what I would do if you were gone too."

"…I promise."

Henry pulled Terriermon close, and held him in his embrace for two minutes. Finally, he released his partner, and they entered the building.

Henry chose not to wait in the lobby this time. He immediately entered the research facility, stopping only to prove to the bemused secretary it was really him. The room looked exactly like it had six days ago: Whizzing machines, bustling researchers, and a loud hum penetrating everything. Yamaki and Shibumi turned and looked at the boy walking to them.

"Thanks for coming on such short notice," Yamaki started, "but before we go any further, I think we should-"

"I didn't get my hopes up, if that's what you mean," Henry interrupted him, "but I do wonder why you called me. What have we got?"

Shibumi continued where Yamaki left off. "Actually, it's probably best if we wait for Rika, wouldn't you agree?"

Henry suddenly realised the lack of a certain fiery-red haired girl. "Oh…Sorry."

"Don't count me out just yet."

Rika walked up to the group, putting a brave face on in front of them. Renamon tailed closely behind.

"So why have you called us here?" Rika questioned the two adults, toying with the faintly glowing locket around her neck.

"We analyzed the four of you," Yamaki stated, "and as it turns out, you two are, like Takato, composed of data, formed into false proteins, giving you human forms."

Rika and Henry had just had their suspicions confirmed. It seemed only logical that since their closest friend and partner was data, they would be too. Both had theorized why, and both of them thought they had figured it out.

"And I believe Ryo is the same way as well," Yamaki threw a monkey wrench into Henry and Rika's thoughts.

"Why Ryo? What makes him-" Henry put the pieces together in his head. "You think it has something to do with Biomerging?"

"It seems the most logical at this point. Another theory of ours is that you four were the most experienced with the Digital World. It's possible the World itself converted you permanently to ease the process."

"Of course, this is only speculation," Shibumi clarified.

"What else have you found?" Rika asked firmly.

"Well, the piece of data you brought us. It really _is_ Takato," Yamaki said, "and there's more. You two know how the Digital World is a sentient being, right?"

Rika and Henry nodded in harmony.

"Well, when a Digimon…dies, its data is sent to a place called the 'Primary Village.' I came across the term several times while in the library in the Digital World. The data sends itself there, almost like instinct, and when the data is in the real world, the same rule applies. The data finds a way back to the Digital World, and then to Primary Village. There are of course exceptions to this, such as when data is completely wiped out of existence, or when it's absorbed by the victorious Digimon." Shibumi explained.

Rika's eyes widened as she put two and two together. "You're saying Takato might be at this Primary Village?" she queried cautiously.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. We have been scanning the Digital World all week to find signs of Takato, and we found some. They're right where they should be: The Primary Village."

Rika felt a surge of happiness nearly escape her mouth in the form of a squeal, but she managed to qualm her emotions, at least for now, and her fear took the opening it saw. "Well, what happens if he reforms and gets killed for real?"

"He can't reform. His data is floating hopelessly in limbo, trying to become whole. The only thing stopping it is the piece of data you still have of him. He's not whole until you return it to him. That means-"

"Road trip!" Terriermon shouted excitedly.

"The Primary Village isn't exactly going to be easy to find, however. It's located on a plane that until very recently, we didn't know existed: The Seventh Plane. That's where you'll find him." Yamaki stated.

Rika's stomach unknotted just a little bit. She was overjoyed at just the possibility of seeing Takato again.

"I assume you're all up to the challenge?"

The four nodded in unison.

"Then I'll give you a word of caution." Yamaki warned the Tamers. "While we don't know much about this plane, we do know it's not like any other plane you've visited previously. It's a world in and of itself, not relying on the other planes. It's also very far away, so I doubt you'll find any data streams to take you there. I have no idea how you'll get there, if you can get there. Be very careful, all of you. I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you guys." Yamaki said softly.

"We'll do what we can," Rika bowed her head in respect, "and we won't come back without him. I promise."

* * *

><p>Yamaki bowed his head in return, and the four exited the facility, and headed for the hideout. They entered the small concrete hut, and climbed down the enormous hole Guilmon had dug a few years ago. Rika slowly crept toward the hole, but Henry put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.<p>

"Hang on, we should come up with a plan first," Henry started, "not to mention we should tell our parents where we're going."

Rika looked down to the locket. "I can't, Henry. I have to go find him." She said, her voice shaking.

Henry gave her a serious look. "You loved him, didn't you?" He said, partially already knowing the answer.

Rika's head spun to meet Henry's so fast she swore she heard a whistle. "What? W-what are you talking about? I don't…I mean, come on, Gogglehead? It's just…I don't…I…" Rika hung her head low, and tears fell from her eyes once again, absorbed in her trademarked heart t-shirt. She used to wear a shirt with a broken heart, but her mother gave her a full heart, as a symbol of her understanding. Rika never wore the old shirt again, showing her forgiveness towards her mother. "Fine. Are you happy now?" She said without looking up.

"Rika…" Henry was torn. He desperately wanted to tell Rika the truth that Takato loved her back, but he wasn't sure if it was the right time. He decided to withhold the information, at least for now. "We'll come back tomorrow. We'll bring supplies. We'll find him. I give you my word."

Rika sniffled, and retreated back to the entrance to the hideout. "Alright. I'll tell my mom we're going tomorrow whether she likes it or not. Renamon, come. We need to prepare." She said stoically. "I'll…I'll see you tomorrow." She turned and departed for her house, leaving Henry and Terriermon standing there.

"So, what do we do now?" The green bunny Digimon asked.

"We get ready." Henry said strongly, as he turned and headed home, Terriermon on his shoulder. "Takato, we're coming to get you."

* * *

><p>He was fading. He was fading into the nothingness. He fought, but it was winning. It was only a matter of time before he became nothing. He knew nothing could save him, but he kept his hope alive. It was the only thing that could fight off the nothing. That, and he could do something, if he knew what it was. He needed the something. He didn't know what the something was, but he knew it was important. He wanted the something to reveal itself, so he could be whole again. Takato was something too, and he couldn't let that go. He needed to stay something, or else what's the point? He kept trying to figure out what he was missing, but to no avail. It was nothing. He felt copious amounts of nothing pouring out of nothing. Nothing was everywhere, and he could do nothing to stop it. He could only delay it, and he hoped he could delay it long enough for something to find him again. As Takato started losing hope, he saw a light in the nothingness. <em>Something.<em> He tried to reach for it, but he couldn't move. He could see nothing, yet he saw something. He could feel nothing, yet he felt something. The something fought off the nothing. He felt nothing fade away, until he could only feel something, but he still didn't know what it was, and until he knew what something was, he couldn't stop nothing. He was still becoming nothing. Nothing would stop it.

But something could.

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><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER SEVEN~<strong>

**Whew, this one was a doozy. I really hope you guys like this one. This one was definitely a little more…Different than I imagined it would be. It was disorienting to say the least, and I'm still kind of lost by it. Anyway, thanks for reading, and if you'd like to review, that'd be just awesome. There's something later on in the story that could occur one of three ways, and I won't spoil it here, but I'll just say it's fucking tough trying to choose which route I'm gonna take later on. Each one has its own Pro's and Con's, but I think I've made my decision on it. Thanks for being so awesome you guys. And so, I bid thee (Temporarily) adieu.**


	8. Preparation

**Hello again. I've got nothing to say. Apparently it takes more than just hoping really hard to take control of a property as large as Digimon. Who knew? Back to the drawing board, I guess. Anyway, large thanks to everyone reading this (Including you, yes, YOU.) and a larger thanks to the reviewers, your flowers are in the mail. I think. *Turns to Nigel* Hey Nigel, you sent the flowers right? …Oh. Yeah, there are no flowers. I will send cake though this time. Delicious cake. **_**Stan:**__**It's a lie-**_**SMACK! No! That joke stopped being funny years ago! Anyway, here's the next chapter.**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 8<p>

Rika was angry. It seemed as though she found herself angry on many occasions, but this time was more than just angry for anger's sake. For one thing, she was angry at Henry, but she understood his point of view; it was better to be more prepared than to run in without a plan. She was also angry at herself, as she came very close to doing something spectacularly foolish by jumping through that portal by herself, with no idea what she would do. More than that though, she was angry at her mother. Her mother always thought she knew just what was right for her daughter, but she was wrong this time. Rika knew she was wrong this time. She had patched things up with her mom ever since the D-Reaper incident, but they still had their rough edges. Rika was also feeling great despair. She'd dealt with it quite well before she met Takato, but Takato did something to her when he broke through two years ago. Before, she'd been cold as ice, and hot as fire. She still had the same bark, but she'd lost a bit of the bite over her adventures with the others. Rika's eyes were swimming with tears as she looked up at her mother, who simply stood there, arms crossed.

"It's not fair!" Rika said childishly. "This might be my only chance of rescuing him! I've been to the Digital World before, what's different this time?"

"I'll be there to protect her, as will Henry and Terriermon," Renamon said stoically. "I will protect her with my life."

"I'm sure you will," Rika's mother retaliated, "but it's too dangerous. I'd feel more at ease if Takato and Guilmon were with you."

Rika was getting noticeably frustrated by this point. "We'll be perfectly fine. We've saved the world before, or have you forgotten?" she said through gritted teeth.

"I don't care if you've saved the entire universe! I'm not letting you go on a suicide mission!" Rumiko said harshly. Rika couldn't understand why her mother was overreacting so much.

"Then I'm going _without _your approval," Rika said surprisingly calmly, but still with an edge to her voice. Renamon turned sharply to her Tamer, startled.

"W-what?" Rumiko stammered.

"I'm going to save Takato, whether you like it or not. This might be my only chance of ever seeing him again, and I'm taking it. I'm leaving in the morning." Rika turned and headed for her bedroom, tears streaking down her face. She grabbed her cellphone from the kitchen table on the way, flipping it open and dialing the number of a certain Matsuki family.

"Hello, Matsuki Bakery," Mie Matsuki said dismally.

"Mrs. Matsuki? It's Rika," she said softly from her bedroom.

"Rika? How are you doing? Is everything okay?" Mie said.

"Yeah. Actually, we need to talk. Can I come by tomorrow?"

"Uh, sure. We'll probably be about done our first batch of bread at nine, will that work?"

"That'll be great. I'll see you then." Rika hung up the phone and dialled Henry's number.

* * *

><p>Henry picked up the ringing receiver and read the caller ID.<p>

NONAKA, RUMIKO

He hit the call button, and put the phone to his ear.

"Rika? What's up?"

"We're meeting with Takato's parents at nine tomorrow. I'll see you then. –CLICK"

Henry tried to say something, but was cut off by the beep. He sighed to himself as he hung up the phone. "Do _I_ get any say in this?"

* * *

><p>Rika, Renamon, Henry, and Terriermon walked side-by-side through the winding streets, before finally arriving at the bakery. They looked at each other for a second, unsure of what to do, before Rika stepped up and knocked on the door. It took only a few seconds for it to open, revealing the face of Takehiro Matsuki.<p>

"Oh! Come on in."

The four walked in and sat down in the living room. The now six that sat in various chairs sat in an awkward silence for a few minutes, before Mie broke the quiet.

"So, what did you need to talk to us about?" she asked gently.

"Well, I don't know how to say this," Henry started thinking of what he would say. "Well, I mean, there's a possibility, of, well, there could be-"

"Takato's still alive!" Rika finally blurted out. Takehiro stiffened up, speechless, while Mie's eyes opened wider than Rika thought physically possible.

"He…He…He's alive?" Mie managed to mutter.

Rika nodded her head with a weak smile. Terriermon perked up a little bit too.

"He's in the Digital World. We're going to get him today." Henry stated.

Takato's parents burst into tears. Takehiro went upstairs to fetch Guilmon to tell him the good news.

"How are you going to bring him back?" Mie questioned the children.

"The same way we brought back Calumon. We won't be gone more than a few days, I ho-"

Henry was cut off by an enormous red monster leaping onto Rika, but being intercepted by Renamon, purely by reflex. The Digimon was not discouraged though. He jumped up and danced around, smiling and laughing.

"Takato! He's alive! I knew it! Let's go get him!"

Guilmon ran out of the building, heading for the hideout.

"Guilmon, wait!" Henry shouted, but it was too late. The four bade farewell to Takato's parents before running after the ecstatic Digimon. Against all odds, Guilmon ran even too fast for Renamon to catch up with him. The four chased the red dinosaur all the way to the hideout, but it was too late. By the time they got to the portal, they saw a red tail slip in.

"Damn it! We're too late!" Rika said.

"Let's head to Hypnos. We'll pick up some equipment, and then we'll go after him." Henry said in an effort to cool Rika down. It worked a little bit, but Rika still left a noticeable impression in Henry's shoulder on the way out of the hideout.

* * *

><p>"You'll need these communicators," Yamaki continued handed Rika and Henry matching communicators like the one Takato had when they went to rescue Calumon, "when you have him, and you want to return, send us a message on these. We've upgraded the system, so you'll have an easier time getting a hold of us, although we haven't fully examined the Seventh Plane yet, so we may run into unforeseen problems. In case you can't reach us, we will be sending down and arc every Sunday at 7:00PM, regardless of transmissions. We will make sure it's noticeable on your D-Arcs detections system, so you'll know where it'll be. Also, if I could see your D-Arcs for a moment…"<p>

Yamaki took the two devices with care, slotting them into matching ports on a massive metallic supercomputer. After a few minutes of incessant noise, he unplugged the devices and handed them back to their respective owners. "I modified the software, and boosted the signal range. You'll now be able to keep a closer eye on each other, as well as communicate freely within range."

"That's not the best part," Riley chimed in, "Not only that, but it also has what I like to call the 'D-Tracker.' You can scan any piece of data you want, and it'll search for matching bitlengths. In other words, you can scan Takato's data into it, and it'll search everywhere within range for the matching set."

Rika let a smile flicker over her mouth, the first smile in a week. She looked to Henry, who was also excited. Terriermon bounced up and down on Henry's head. Even Renamon had trouble hiding a smirk. Rika turned to the two Hypnos executives standing before her.

"I-I don't know what to say. Thank you so much." Rika bowed her head, and let a few teardrops fall to the floor discreetly.

Henry followed suit, causing Terriermon to fall off and roll toward Yamaki. "We'll bring him back. I promise." Henry said.

"Do what you can. I hope to hear from you soon. Good luck."

* * *

><p>Standing four feet away from the Digital portal made Rika's stomach flutter. She still couldn't really believe it was happening. The portal was pulsating and casting off small glimpses of the Digital World. With a reassuring yellow paw on her shoulder, she shuffled on, vanishing into the light, Henry close behind.<p>

Rika and Henry felt the familiar weightlessness of the void. They, along with their Digimon partners, were floating in an endless void of symbols, characters and numbers. She adjusted her glasses, and looked to Henry, who was holding onto Terriermon so tight, he was turning blue.

"So what do we do now?" Henry said.

"Well even if we knew where to go, we wouldn't know how to get there, would we?" Rika replied.

"Well, first we need to know which way is down," Terriermon said, trying to sound helpful.

Rika and Renamon's felt a massive sense of dread as Henry, without even thinking, uttered the damning words. "I think down is tha…Oh, shit."

The four plummeted toward the Digital World. Renamon opened her eyes and saw desert, as far as her eyes could see.

_"Well, at least we're falling somewhere familiar,"_ she thought, _"but I hope Guilmon fell this way too."_

Sand got closer, closer, closer, until…

**-THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!-**

Rika couldn't see anything but black. She struggled to move, but found herself immobile, except for the lower part of her legs. Struggling for air, she remembered not to think about needing to breathe. It worked, and she returned to trying to remover herself from the hole. She wriggled and writhed, but couldn't free herself. Suddenly, she felt something tugging on her leg, pulling hard enough to dislodge her from the sand. She flew through the air and landed in the lap of a slightly dazed Renamon.

"Thanks." Rika said.

Renamon nodded in reply, looking around for signs of Guilmon, before directing her eyes to an odd object quite far away. She focused her eyes, but from this distance it was anyone's guess what it was.

"There's something out there!" she said, pointing in the direction.

The four ran toward the object in question, until it started to take shape. First, three small dots, then three small lines, them legs and a tail. _Red _legs and a tail. _Guilmon!_

Guilmon felt himself lifted out of the ground like nothing by a tall yellow fox.

"Hello Renamon, did you bring any food?" Guilmon asked, ignoring the fact that he had been stuck in the sand for the better part of a full day.

Renamon simply smirked. "Of course we did, Guilmon, but we do not need to eat it. We brought it for you."

Guilmon beamed at the yellow Digimon. "YAY!" Rika opened up her bag, and handed the bread, chocolate and cream puffs to Guilmon, who scarfed the food down merrily. The five then sat down, and discussed their next move.

"I say we should contact Yamaki," Rika stated, "just to let him know we're okay."

"That's a good idea. I'll input Takato's data and scan the surrounding area, just to be sure. Can I see th-"

"_I'll_ scan the data, _you_ can call Yamaki," Rika said, tensing up.

Henry sweatdropped, feeling uneasy. "Okay, you can do it. I'll get typing." Just as Henry was going to ask where the data bit was, Rika opened the small locket she was wearing, revealing the small red orb. It pulsated, giving off a light as bright as a candle's flame. She scanned it through her D-Arc, and returned it to the locket, shutting it tightly. As the scan completed, the D-Arc's digi-locator opened up, showing no trace of matching data. Even though she expected this result, she was still a little disappointed. Henry sat on a rock, tapping away at the screen of the small communicator. Rika looked up at the real world and sighed.

_"We're coming."_

* * *

><p>The something was getting stronger, Takato could feel it. There was almost no nothing left. The something was closer, and yet further away, as Takato continued to fade, despite the nothing being driven away. The something could only stop Takato from ceasing to be if the something was with him and he knew what the something was. Takato desperately tried to find out what the something was, but there was nothing where something was supposed to be. The lack of something was eating Takato from the inside. The something was killing him and saving him at the same time.<p>

The five sat around a small fire Guilmon cooked up with his Pyro Sphere, as the Tamers thought up a plan. After over an hour of bickering, Terriermon of all people piped up.

"Maybe the Sovereign know a way to get there," the bunny Digimon suggested, stunning the other four.

"That…That's a great idea!" Henry said, astounded, with Rika and Renamon reluctantly agreeing. "We'll head for the Sovereign's Plane!"

"Just one problem," Rika said, "How exactly do we _get_ to the Sovereign's Plane?"

Henry pondered for a few minutes, before making a suggestion. "Well, we know it's right above us, right?"

Rika nodded, not knowing where he was going with this.

"Well, why don't we just fly up? I mean, Sakuyamon and MegaGargomon can fly." Henry proposed.

Rika agreed. "It's worth a shot," she said, "let's do it!"

**BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION**

**Terriermon, Biomerge to…MegaGargomon!**

Rika, Renamon and Guilmon climbed onto the enormous green robot, and MegaGargomon blasted off, headed for the Sixth Plane. Rika grasped her glowing locket in her hand, and covered her eyes from the bright light as they approached the Sovereign's Plane.

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER EIGHT~<strong>

**Well, what do you think? I hope you guys like it. I'm thinking about doing a short one-shot of an alternate ending, where Takato survived the blast and such. It wouldn't be long, and it would probably be less than two thousand words, so it wouldn't take long, so what do you think of that idea? If you want to review, that's just great. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!**

* * *

><p><strong>~-~RemEMBeR tHE caKE~-~<strong>


	9. Explanation

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter. I've released it side-by-side with a one-shot alternate ending. In the alternate ending, Takato survives the blast, so you can check that out if you want. It's called "Well Now They Can: A Rikato Fic" and I think it turned out all right, but it is pretty basic, just kinda fluffy and not so deep. Without further ado, here's chapter nine. Nope, still no ownership of Digimon. Can you believe it? They won't even return my calls anymore!**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 9<p>

Rika peered over the metal shoulder of MegaGargomon as he flew across the Sovereign Plane, searching for Azulongmon. The rocky terrains, the vast chasms, and the spiraling towers of rock passed underneath in mere seconds. Rika was flooded with dreadful memories when she recognised the site of the battle with Beelzemon, and Guilmon's dark Digivolution. She could remember the look on Takato's face. Takato was no longer…human, in a way at that moment. His eyes showed nothing but a feral bloodthirsty rage, wanting nothing less than Beelzemon's ultimate suffering. The hazard symbol on WarGrowlmon's chest glowed bright scarlet, and a dark feeling fell onto the Tamers. Megidramon was the most terrifying thing Rika had ever seen, and even now, the memory of it sent a shiver up her spine. She looked forward, spotting Azulongmon in the distance. MegaGargomon must have seen it too, since Rika felt their course change to rendezvous with the large bearded dragon Digimon.

"Well, what brings you here, humans?" Azulongmon asked the approaching Tamers.

"We've…got a few questions for you," Henry said after dedigivolving.

"Well, ask away," Azulongmon said, "the least I can give you after you saved this world is answers, if I have them to give."

"Well, a week ago, Takato…was wiped out by a wild Digimon," Henry said slowly, holding his voice steady," but instead of just…dying, he turned into data."

"Yes, and?" Azulongmon said flatly, seeing nothing untoward in what Henry just told him.

"Well, humans aren't data, like Digimon," Henry started, before being cut off by Azulongmon.

"I know that," Azulongmon said, "but you don't understand _why_ you're made up of data? I'm certain I instructed him to explain it all."

"Who? Who was supposed to explain this?" Rika said angrily.

Azulongmon sighed. "Dobermon. When we were fighting the True Enemy alongside you Tamers, we saw that you were unable to biomerge into your mega forms. We knew that data and true flesh and blood would never be able to synthesize correctly, so we created Dobermon to convert you into data, like us. Your data would take a solid form, much like a Digimon entering your world. Dobermon's data was specifically created to accomplish this task. The data used in _your_ conversion was very special though. Your data keeps up an illusion of humanity right up until it is no longer capable. A Digimon, when injured, leaks data, whereas you would bleed like a normal human being. Your composition may be data at core, but your bodies are human in every way. It's truly a marvel, and you have Zhuqiaomon to thank for it."

Henry and Rika seemed to understand the gist of what Azulongmon was saying, but Renamon was having a little trouble with it. Rika swore she saw steam coming out of Terriermon's ears, and Guilmon wasn't even trying to comprehend it; he had simply shut his mind off and was now on auto-pilot.

"Well, when Takato was destroyed, his data returned to the Digital World, specifically, to the Primary Village." Rika continued.

"Ah yes, the Primary Village. All Digimon are reincarnated there."

"We need to get there and bring him back."

Azulongmon narrowed his eyes in thought. "Don't worry; I'll fetch him for you. If none of the data was absorbed by the enemy Digimon you mentioned, he should be right as rain by now."

Rika glanced down at her locket. "That's the thing. His data isn't all there. I have a bit right here," Rika opened the locket and revealed the data to the Sovereign Digimon.

"Well, that complicates things, doesn't it?" Azulongmon asked rhetorically. "Unfortunately, you'll have to rescue him yourself. We have been quite busy cleaning up the remnants of the True Enemy's final stand. I can send you to the Seventh Plane, but you'll be on your own from there."

Terriermon thought of something. "Hang on, if all Digimon are reincarnated at the Primary Village, would Leomon be there too?"

Rika's spirits lifted a little bit at the thought, only to be doused by Henry's big fat dose of reality.

"How about the Devas?" he asked worriedly, "will they come back too?"

Azulongmon clarified his previous statement. "Unfortunately, no, Leomon will not be revived at the Primary Village, nor will the Devas. That is because if the data is absorbed by another Digimon, such as Leomon being absorbed by Beelzemon, there is no data left to return to the Village. Also, if the data is corrupted in some way, or the Digimon was wiped out by a very powerful attack, the data can be vaporised completely, leaving no trace."

"Alright, let's go," Rika said.

"Hold on a minute."

Rika, Henry and Renamon spun around to see a large, four-winged Digimon carrying a smug-looking Ryo Akiyama. Rika didn't even attempt to hide her groan.

"You didn't think you were gonna have all the fun, did you?" he said, smirking at Rika.

Rika turned back to Azulongmon, refusing to acknowledge Ryo. "So are we going or not?" she said impatiently.

"I have to warn you: The Primary Village is located in a world much different than the worlds you'll find here." Azulongmon said grimly.

"Momentai!" Terriermon said.

"Alright then. We shall leave immediately!"

The ground shook beneath the Tamers' feet. Rika instinctively wrapped her arms around Renamon. Terriermon tumbled all about as the ground lifted up where they stood, and soared into the sky. Rika saw Azulongmon become smaller and smaller. "Good luck children!" he called out to them.

"Look up there!" Renamon said observantly.

Up in the sky, a rift was opening up. As it widened, the Tamers spotted a large island resting in the middle of a vast ocean. The island was covered in all different biomes: Forest, swamp, desert, and tundra. There was an enormous mountain in the middle of the island. As the platform they were standing on approached the rift, Henry felt himself getting lighter and lighter, until they were within reach, and Henry came to a realisation.

"Uhh, guys," Henry said worriedly, "what happens when we go through the hole?"

Rika and Renamon had the same thought. The rift opened wider, and the five felt themselves lifted up into it.

"Uh-oh," Terriermon said nervously.

They entered through the rift, and felt the inevitable tug of gravity, sending them falling to the island at a terrifying velocity. Rika opened her eyes in the intense wind, and saw the island getting larger at an alarming rate. Terriermon's cries were drowned out by the air screaming in everyone's ears. Rika stifled a laugh when she looked over to Renamon; face completely obscured by wildly flailing yellow fur. Ryo was tightly gripped by Cyberdramon, giving him a strong sense of security. Henry was grabbing Terriermon's legs with an iron grip. The island got larger and larger, until it completely filled Rika's view. The team screwed their eyes shut tightly as they fell into the forest, twigs and branches whipping them on the way down.

**-THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!-**

Rika groaned and rubbed the back of her head, suddenly very jealous of Ryo and Cyberdramon's soft landing. Guilmon tried to get Terriermon out of a tree, while Henry pulled twigs out of his hair. Rika and Henry let loose a flurry of laughter when they caught sight of Renamon. Her fur had puffed up to thrice the volume it normally was, and twigs and dirt coated it. Renamon simply slouched down on a rock and pulled the bits and bobs out of the mess as Terriermon finally regained consciousness, crashing down onto Guilmon, who in turn knocked Renamon into a puddle of mud, angering the vixen further. Renamon stood up and chased after the two Digimon, all the while the three tamers stood by laughing their asses off, barely being able to breathe. After final calming down, the now seven set up camp, and plotted their next move.

"I'll run the scanner," Rika spoke up in the midst of the discussion, "and Ryo and Cyberdramon can fly up and take a look around."

"I got a message through to Yamaki," Henry said looking up from the communicator, "looks like we get signal from here after all."

Rika ran the scanner once again, looking up to see Cyberdramon flying overhead. At least it _looked_ like Cyberdramon; it was pretty hard to tell. Henry started a campfire, and immediately had to save Terriermon from falling into it. Guilmon loafed around looking for someone to play with, and Renamon lay in a nearby tree, keeping watch. Rika got a little worried when she realised the Digimon she saw earlier was in fact not Cyberdramon, but in fact something else. Ryo and Cyberdramon were over near Henry.

"Come on, you piece of crap," Rika said to her D-Arc, "why won't you scan?"

The scanner finally flashed into life, as Rika put her D-Arc down and walked over to Renamon.

"Renamon, are you asleep?"

Renamon opened one of her eyelids slowly. "Only a little bit. What do you need?"

"Well, nothing really," Rika said shyly, "I just…I…"

"What is it?" Renamon turned to face her partner.

"Do you think…Takato will be okay?"

Renamon smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. Before you know it, he'll be safe and sound with us again."

"Thanks."

Rika's D-Arc beeped to signal the scan was complete. Rika walked over to it, and saw that Takato was nowhere within range. Rika was only a little disappointed, knowing full well that they may be very far from the primary village.

"I've got a reply from Yamaki," Henry announced to the group, "he says they've got the Monster Makers team working on the arc, and it will be ready in time."

"Excellent." Ryo said, "We'll be back in no time!"

Rika's head spun around as she heard a noise in the woods behind her. "What's wrong?" Henry asked.

"I think I heard something," Rika responded.

Rika, Henry, Renamon and Terriermon went to investigate. They travelled through the forest for several minutes, before coming to a clearing in a meadow. The grassy meadow was completely devoid of anything, save for a tiny television set. The group ran up to it, noticing that despite no electricity running to it, it was running just fine.

"I wonder what's up with this thing." Rika said to nobody in particular. She moved in closer to the display. "Hey, there are people on the screen!"

In fact, three people were prominently displayed, with several more in the background. One boy had brown spiky hair and wore goggles, making him slightly resemble Takato. Another was a girl with straight brown hair, wearing a pink and white shirt and yellow shorts, with a camera around her neck. The third was an older boy, wearing what appeared to be a school uniform, sporting ridiculously unkempt brown hair. The group was discussing something, and Rika thought they were preparing to go on a trip somewhere.

_"I've never seen this show,"_ Rika thought.

The group of people on TV pulled out devices that in Rika's opinion looked uncannily similar to their own D-Arcs, and aimed them at the "Audience."

Rika leaned in to get a closer look at the devices, right before she heard the girl in front say:

"**Digiport Open!**"

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER NINE~<strong>

**I'm sorry, I could have included the next part here, but this spot was a much better place to cut the chapter off. What do you guys think of this? If you want, you can go check out the one-shot alternate ending as well. Thanks, and I'll see you next time!**

* * *

><p><strong>~-~RemEMBeR tHE caKE~-~<strong>


	10. Introduction

**Hello again. I wish I could say I had a real excuse as to why it's been over a month since my last chapter, but I don't have one. You may think that since it's been so long, this chapter's going to be extra-long, amazing, and all around worth the wait, but that's wrong. I've just been a lazy motherfucker; I never got around to finishing it. I'm really, really sorry about that. Then again, I don't think anyone's on the edge of their seat waiting for my new chapters. Anyway, here's chapter ten! Oh, and I still don't own Digimon. Sigh…**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 10<p>

Rika and Henry suddenly felt the weight of twelve people and twelve Digimon crushing the life out of them. Rika could barely breathe, and Henry was not doing much better. Renamon and Terriermon managed to get out of the way of the appearing children, and Renamon was now poised to defend her partner. Terriermon wasn't quite so composed; he tripped and fell, disappearing into the tall grass.

"Ugh," a blond-haired boy in the dog pile said, "Next time, remind me to bring a helmet."

"No kidding," a brunette boy responded from beneath him. "Who designed this entry-exit system? It's highly inefficient in my opinion."

"I wholeheartedly agree, Izzy," a red beetle-like Digimon concurred with the aforementioned 'Izzy.' "Now would you mind getting off of me, if it's at all convenient to you?"

"I can't move," Izzy replied, "Someone's on top of me."

"Oh, sorry about that," a yellow dinosaur Digimon said as it shifted off the pile.

Rika and Henry gasped for air as they were finally able to squirm out of the bundle. Unfortunately, as they escaped, the tower lost balance, toppling everyone into a heap. Renamon came to Rika's aid as the girl dusted herself off. Terriermon only managed to cause Henry to tumble again, tripping over the obscured bunny.

Ryo and Cyberdramon approached from the forest to find many more people than Ryo was expecting. "What's going on here?" he asked himself.

"It looks like more people showed up," Guilmon said, appearing out of nowhere and startling Ryo in the process.

Henry rubbed the back of his head and looked over to the groaning mass of legs and arms. "So, who are you?" he asked the group.

The brown-haired girl Rika had seen earlier on the television got to her feet and turned to face Henry. "Uhh, I'm Kari," she said nervously. "Who are you? We've never seen other people around here."

"I'm Henry," Henry responded, "and this is Terriermon," he gestured to his partner, who now sat on his shoulder.

"Hello there," Terriermon said.

"That's Ryo over there by the trees, with his partner Cyberdramon." Henry continued.

"I'm Rika," Rika said callously. "This is Renamon." Rika nodded to her yellow kitsune partner.

"Oh," Kari said, a little put off by the fiery-haired girl's coldness.

"I'm Tai," the spiky-haired boy stood up. "And this is Agumon."

"Hi there!" the yellow dinosaur said happily.

The groups continued introductions, until eventually reaching a blue-haired boy in a grey jacket and pants. Ryo moved in to join the group, narrowing his eyes onto this boy.

_"Who is that?"_ he thought, _"He seems…familiar."_

Ryo quickly looked away as his eyes met with those of the blue-haired boy. "I'm Ken Ichijouji." The boy said. "It's a pleasure to meet you all."

Ryo's eyes widened as he remembered back to the battle with Millenniummon, fighting alongside Ken.

"So you call yourselves the 'Digidestined,' huh?" Henry said to Izzy. "I can't say I've heard the term before."

"Well, what do you call yourselves?" Izzy responded.

"We just call ourselves 'Digimon Tamers.' We don't really have a name for it." Henry answered.

"So, what are you guys doing here?" The pink-haired girl named Mimi asked the Tamers. "We barely see anyone else around here."

"Well…" Rika started, struggling to piece together an explanation in her head.

Luckily, Henry stepped in and took the pressure off Rika. "It's kind of a long story." He said dismissively.

"We've got time; what happened?" Sora prodded.

* * *

><p>Guilmon was simultaneously confused and overjoyed by the sudden arrival of twenty-six more people than he expected. Guilmon quickly tuckered himself out trying to chase after the playful ones, such as Patamon and Veemon; most of the other Digidestined Digimon just sat around wondering just who he was; not even Tentomon had heard of a Guilmon, and Izzy's Digimon Analyzer turned up nothing too. The groups soon sat around the campfire Henry had prepared before their arrival, and started chatting.<p>

"Are you sure you're a Digimon?" Gatomon asked Guilmon.

"Uhh, I think so," Guilmon racked his brain, befuddled by the sheer simplicity of such a difficult question, "but I don't know. Are _you_ a Digimon?"

Gatomon turned away angrily, a little insulted by the comment from the Crimson Dinosaur.

"Guilmon's…a special case." Henry said to Izzy, who was trying to figure out why his Analyzer just refused to work on Guilmon. "He was created by Takato, our friend."

"He created a Digimon? Prodigious! Where is this Takato? I'd like to research his methods." Izzy queried.

"I…well…I mean…" Henry stammered. "That's why we're here."

"What do you mean?"

"Takato got…well…deleted in the real world."

"I don't understand. Deletion would require data, wouldn't it?" Izzy asked.

"Yes, and a while back, he got turned into data."

"Why?"

"That," Henry said, not wanting to get into too many specifics, "is an even longer story."

"Oh, okay," Izzy said, taking the hint. "But if he's data, then are you guys data too?"

"Yes." Henry stated.

"Wait a second," Tentomon interrupted. "You said this friend of yours was deleted, correct?"

Henry nodded in affirmation.

"Then that means his data will be-"

"-At the Primary Village." Rika finished Tentomon's thought. "That's why we're here."

"You wouldn't happen to have directions to it, would you?" Terriermon interjected.

"Actually, we've been there before!" Sora said, shuddering as she remembered the havoc caused by a Black Gear stricken Monzaemon. "It's on the far side of the island. We can take you there."

"Are you sure? It's pretty far away, and don't you guys have a reason for being here?" Henry said, not wanting to impose.

"We don't have anywhere we need to be anyway! We stop by all the time, just to check up on things." Palmon said happily.

"Sure! Sounds great!" Terriermon exclaimed.

"The more, the merrier." Rika said sarcastically under her breath.

* * *

><p>Something was there. Something was coming. Something was something. But nothing was there too. Could something be more than nothing? Takato saw something inching closer to nothing, but nothing was inching away from something. They were moving closer, yet staying the same distance apart. Takato felt something. Something felt Takato. Takato was confused. Nothing was turning Takato into nothing. Something was trying to change nothing, but nothing never changes. Nothing is nothing. Something is nothing without nothing, and nothing is nothing without something. Takato felt nothing again, then something, then nothing. Takato worked as hard as he could to remember something. He knew he knew something, but he didn't know something about something: only nothing. It was maddening to Takato; something was so close, yet nothing came instead. <em>Nothing.<em>

* * *

><p>The Digidestined set up their tents near the campfire, and the entire group wondered just where they would be if they didn't have Joe. Rika rolled her eyes as Davis argued incessantly about why <em>he<em> should be entitled to share a tent with Kari, when the rest of the group had already agreed her older brother Tai would share it instead. Davis finally admitted defeat as Kari wandered into the battle. Davis turned as red as Guilmon, as he stammered, not wanting Kari to know what they were arguing about. Tai and Matt seemed to agree, as the awkward conversation that followed involved no mention of the previous argument. Kari agreed with Tai and Matt's side of the altercation, and that was that. Patamon, Gatomon and Terriermon were playing a small game of tag; Guilmon had quit the game because he found it unfair how he was constantly 'It' due to his size and sluggish design. Ryo and Ken were chatting about 'old times'. Izzy typed away on his computer, looking up to see Rika scanning the surrounding area again for signs of Takato. Izzy stood up and walked over to the Tamer.

"Is that a Digivice?" He inquired. "It looks a little like the D-3's some of the others have."

"We call them D-Arcs, but yeah," Rika said softly.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm searching for Takato's data."

"Your D-Arc can do that? That doesn't seem like something the programmer would build in by default," Izzy said.

"It's not a built in feature," Rika said condescendingly, "it was uploaded before we came."

"Oh. Okay." Izzy said uneasily. "I'll stop asking stupid questions."

Rika sighed. "I'm sorry, it wasn't a stupid question. I'm just…"

"Just what?"

"I don't want to talk about it." Rika turned away from the boy.

"Okay then." Izzy turned and returned to his laptop, suddenly having a brainwave. He began furiously typing away at his keyboard, bouncing theories off his partner Tentomon.

Renamon observed from nearby, and watched Rika escape into the woods.

_"Why does she continue to do this?"_ Renamon narrowed her eyes in wonder. _"I thought she'd opened up since Taka…Of course! Takato was the one opening her up, and with him gone, she's closed herself off again! But we're bringing him back, so why won't she…"_

Renamon opened her eyes in realization, and with her feelings of understanding came feelings of sorrow. She decided she would confront Rika about this later. _"For now," _Renamon thought, _"I shall give her the space she wants."_

* * *

><p>Henry cursed the night as he tried to fall asleep. He was generally a light sleeper, even when completely at ease. Tonight, Henry was anything but at ease, making sleep almost out of the question. Then, just as he felt his consciousness slipping away, he was awoken by a quiet noise, not far from where he was lying. He listened closer, and found the noise to be stifled sniffling. <em>"Somebody's…crying?" <em>Henry thought as the noise quickly faded, only to be followed by a much louder rustling noise. Henry risked alerting the person by shifting position and opening his eyes to get a look at the person. _"Rika?"_ Henry felt like a child who had just been told Santa Claus wasn't real: His naïve notions of the past were gone. He'd never thought it possible for Rika to cry, and yet here she was: whimpering like a lost pup. She rose from her spot, and walked softly into the woods. Henry heard the quiet of the night interrupted again, this time by the rustling of a nearby tree. _"Renamon too…but where are they going at this time of night?"_ Henry wondered. Henry waited until he heard the movement fade into the distance before rising to his feet as well, determined to find out what was going on. Henry walked quietly through the forest, wondering whether or not he was even going in the right direction. After walking for a few minutes, Henry reached a clearing in the woods. A distraught Rika sat on a rock, near a crystal-clear lake, glistening in the moonlight. Henry was awestruck by the beauty of this place. He was about to give Rika the space she clearly wanted, but just as he turned to start the trek back to camp, Renamon approached the crying girl. Before Renamon reached Rika however, Rika finally burst into tears. Henry could only imagine just how she felt right now. Renamon sat down next to Rika, and Rika leaned into Renamon for support.

"Renamon?" Rika sobbed.

"Yes Rika?" Renamon said soothingly.

"Wh…What if…" Rika broke into more tears. "What if we…can't save him? What if he's gone forever?"

"He'll be there, don't you worry about it. He's a stubborn one, you can be certain of that." Renamon said.

"You don't know that!" Rika said half-angrily, half-sadly. "You're just trying to make me feel better! But what if we're too late?" Rika broke down into another round of sobs.

"I…I…" Renamon stammered. Sympathy wasn't one of Renamon's strengths, and she had no idea what to do. Renamon sighed, and pulled Rika into a tight embrace.

"I don't know what I would do if…If I…" Rika said, falling asleep in Renamon's arms.

Renamon laid Rika in her lap, stroking her hair softly as Rika slept.

"We can only hope."

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER TEN~<strong>

**See, I told you this chapter would be nothing special just because of the wait! I ****am**_** really**_** sorry about that, and I'll try to be better about it in the future. Anyway, I've decided not to give the Digidestined too big a role in this fic. Please let me know if anyone feels out of character, since I don't have good perspective on that sort of thing. I'd like to throw out a special thanks to Nigel, for finally sending out the flowers. They should be arriving at your houses in six to eight weeks. Thanks again everybody for the kind reviews, and I'll see you (Hopefully) within the next week or two, but we'll see if I can actually get off my ass and do something semi-productive with my time.**

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><p><strong>~-~RemEMBeR tHE caKE~-~<strong>


	11. Desperation

**I don't really have much to say. I guess I should say hello, then jump right into the chapter. I just feel like I need to say something before the chapters. Anyway, here's chapter eleven. I still don't own Digimon.**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 11<p>

Davis was a heavy sleeper; that much was clear. He could sleep through damn near anything, and it was always a subject of the group's anger towards the boy. But after meeting up with the Tamers, the Digidestined soon realised Davis wasn't even on the same level as a certain crimson Digimon. Cody couldn't help but laugh as he woke up to the noise of a breathless Davis trying desperately to move the scarlet mass that now slept on top of him. Cody's laughter managed to wake up a few of the others, who in turn tried to help Davis in between fits of their own uncontrolled laughter. Sora and Tai had to hold Matt back as he tried to take a swing at Guilmon with a big stick. Terriermon decided finally to wake up Henry to help once Davis started turning strange shades of purple. Henry wandered over to the Digidestined and Digimon, and just as Tai was about to order Agumon to Digivolve to solve the problem, Henry grumpily shouted,

"BREAKFAST!"

The effect was immediate. Guilmon's eyes shot open, and he jumped up, knocking Joe and TK on their asses. Davis inhaled to full lung capacity, a little peeved that the solution was something so simple. Joe, Matt, Cody, Gomamon, Gabumon and Armadillomon tried in desperation to keep Guilmon away from their emergency food. Henry sighed, wondering if Guilmon would ever change.

"I'll find some firewood," Sora said helpfully, before disappearing into the trees with Biyomon.

Izzy cracked open his laptop, continuing his research where he left off. Rika leaned against a tree, looking away from the group. Henry thought about going over to talk about her, but decided against it.

"I'll go get us some water," Henry said, grabbing Joe's bucket and heading in the direction of the lake he saw the night before.

* * *

><p>As Henry approached the lake, he was greeted with a sudden feeling of powerful doubt. Henry washed the cool, crystal clear water over his face to really wake up, looking at his warbly reflection in the water. He lost his mind in the ripples, staring into the water for eternity, before being brought back by the sight of someone right behind him. Henry spun around to see Renamon standing before him.<p>

"How are you holding up?" Renamon asked softly, something that surprised Henry.

"I'm worried about Rika," Henry said, voice quavering. "She's going back to the way she was before she met Takato."

"I agree." Renamon said tersely, "but that wasn't my question."

Henry turned back toward the lake. He looked down to his reflection again, and saw an image. Henry saw Takato, Rika and himself, just hanging out. Henry almost reached for the image, as if he could grab it, become it, but it vanished. Henry then saw his reflection, and was shocked to see tears running down his face. Henry stiffened up, wiping the tears away.

"I'll be fine. But…" Henry started.

"What is it?" Renamon asked.

"I'm worried about Takato too. I mean, what if he isn't there? What if we've done something wrong, or we're too late?" Henry said, screwing his eyes shut to avoid more tears.

"Well," Renamon started, "like you heard me tell Rika last night, we can only hope for the best. I don't know either Henry, but we need to remain strong. For Rika."

Henry looked up to Renamon. "You knew I was there?"

Renamon nodded affirmation. "I could-"

Renamon turned as the two heard shouting coming from camp.

"Let's go," Renamon said cautiously.

"Right behind you." Henry replied.

* * *

><p>"That's not fair! We need to move quickly!"<p>

"It's too dangerous! If we head there without a plan, we'll get killed!"

"Didn't you say you beat the bad guys? What's the problem?"

"It's not that simple! The Digital World is still a dangerous place!"

Henry pushed back the last of the brush to see a rare and terrifying sight. Matt was trying to face down a ferocious Angry Rika. Rika rarely reached the level of Angry Rika since being numbed to the presence of "The Two Idiots," namely Kazu and Kenta. Annoyed Rika was quite common in their group of friends, mostly 'found' by said two idiots. Irritated Rika was force to be reckoned with, but still manageable under most circumstances. Angry Rika was on a level of her own. Henry only witnessed Angry Rika on a few previous occasions, and had seen a pattern. Angry Rika only came out in times of extreme desperation, and Henry could easily see this as a situation of extreme desperation for the girl.

"Rika…" Henry took the risk and tried to reason with Angry Rika. "Matt's right. We need to think of a plan."

"We need to move now! Takato could need us, and we're gonna just sit here and wait?"

"You don't even know if he's there!" Matt spat back. "He could be dead already, and we could be risking the lives of everyone here for a fool's errand!"

**-SMACK!**

Matt winced and rubbed his cheek, which was now red from the slap. Rika was furious. At this point, she was just angry for the sake of being angry. She was only a little angry at Matt; mostly, she was just angry at herself.

_ "He's right," _her inner monologue told her, _"If we go now, we're endangering everybody."_

_ "He needs us though! If anything happened to him…"_ Rika 'thought' back in her mind.

_"Taking a few hours to plan ahead is the smart thing to do, and you know it! You're doing everything you can right now, but you're going to have to wait!"_

"…Fine." Rika finally caved in. "We'll do this your way." She said, before pushing past Henry, heading back toward the lake. Henry was about to go after her, when he found his path blocked by a fuzzy yellow arm.

"Let her go," was all Renamon said.

Henry nodded and turned back, pulling his D-Arc out of his pocket to initiate a scan. Henry glanced over to Izzy, who sat typing away at his computer. Curiosity piqued, Henry approached the boy, who was deeply engrossed in his work.

* * *

><p>"What's up?" Izzy said, without even looking up at Henry.<p>

"What are you doing?" Henry asked.

"I had a theory." Izzy said. Henry heard a groan of disappointment from behind him at the muttering of those words. "Well, two actually." A louder groan was heard. "I wondered if the cause of you being data correlated in some way to continuous entry and exit into the Digital World. If that is the case, could we be made up of data as well?"

"Well, actually we-"

"So I used my analyzer on myself, and found that we are, in fact, data!"

"Yeah, but I-"

"In the Digital World, at least. But then I remembered that we were _always_ data when we entered the Digital World, and that my test was useless unless I ran it in the _real_ world!"

"I know, bu-"

"So until I run the test in the real world, I can never know if we are also made up of data or not!" Izzy sighed. "I hate having unaccounted variables in my research."

"Can I jus-"

"My second theory pertains to your habitual scanning of the surrounding area for your friend's data. My computer must have a wider range than your Digivices, so maybe I could upload the software to my computer and scan a larger area! Prodigious, wouldn't you say?"

"If I could inter-"

Izzy snatched Henry's Digivice from his hand. "Can I borrow this for a sec? Thanks."

Henry sweatdropped, and decided that it would be much easier to just humor the boy. "Okay then. Let me know when you're done with it."

"Henry?"

Henry jumped as Terriermon made his presence known atop his head. Henry had grown so accustomed to carrying the bunny around on his head, he often forgot about him entirely.

"What is it Terriermon?" Henry dreaded the question he thought Terriermon was about to ask, since he wanted to clear his mind of worry.

"Can we get some food? I'm starving." Terriermon said.

Conveniently, Henry's stomach decided to use that very moment to make _its _presence known to the young Tamer. Henry chuckled to himself.

"Sure," Henry said before adding, "If Guilmon hasn't eaten it all."

* * *

><p><em> "Why won't you just leave me alone?"<em> Rika yelled in her mind. _"I just want to be alone!"_

_ "I would, if that's what you wanted, but you don't want to be alone; you want to be with Takato; and since he's not here, you're shutting yourself off!"_

_ "Well, what does it matter, anyway? He's not coming back, so who else is there to be with?"_

_ "You have Henry! You have your mom, your grandmother! You have Renamon! And you'll have Takato again soon! Why can't you see that?"_

_ "He's gone! He's gone forever, and coming here was a stupid fucking idea to begin with."_

_ "He is not gone! We're going to get him! You'll be with him again soon, and you have to see that, otherwise you'll go back to the way things were before you met him! Do you really want that Rika?"_

_ "Well, no! But without him, there's no reason to-"_

_ "There's always a reason, Rika! You just need to see that! You can't shut yourself off again, and you know why? You'll end up like you were before. You'll be angry, you'll be depressed, and you'll be _alone._ Is that what you want to do Rika? Do you want to end up alone again?"_

_ "No, but-"_

_ "Well it's going to happen if you keep this up!"_

_ "But what if he doesn't come back?"_

_ "He will. Don't worry about it. Now wake up, Renamon's calling you."_

_ "Wha-"_

Rika came to lying against a tree facing the beautiful lake. Her dream doppelganger was right: Renamon was calling her name from the other side of the lake. Questioning what possessed her to amble to the far side of the lake, Rika steadied herself as she rose before waving her arm and calling to Renamon. In the blink of an eye, her partner stood not two meters in front of her, arms crossed.

"What's up, Renamon?" Rika asked.

"I was just coming to make sure you were okay." Renamon said softly, "You seemed upset as you left camp."

Rika was proud of how far Renamon had come in terms of understanding human emotion.

"I'll be okay," Rika said reassuringly, "and I'm sorry if I was a little harsh earlier."

"Are you sure you'll be okay? I don't want you bottling it up like you used to."

"I'm okay, trust me." Rika smiled and turned for camp.

* * *

><p>The Tamers and their Digimon seemed much more 'tame' after a round of food and apologies. Terriermon averted a disaster between Guilmon and Joe after half of the Digidestined's food supply 'mysteriously' went missing, finding a wild DemiDevimon to be actually at fault. Guilmon celebrated his acquittal by eating the recovered food, making Joe turn frightening shades of red.<p>

"Izzy, you should eat something too." Tai said to his friend, who hadn't moved from his spot in the last three hours with the exception of taking a bathroom break.

"In a minute," Izzy replied without even looking up at Tai. "I've just about finished porting the scanning software to recognise the framework of my computer as compatible. It took a lot of trial and error, but I finally found a solution to the problem I had been having."

"That's great, I'll jus-"

"All I had to do was develop a separate kernel that could boot within my Operating System, patch the kernel using the data I received from Henry's Digivice, develop a separate Operating System using the kernel from the Digivice, develop a tool to recognise the ported software once it's finished, generate a three-way-handshake that operates in the same capacity as the one between the Digivice and its scanner, and finally alter the software port to recognise the modified OS as compatible with the current setup. It only took me two hours and forty-seven minutes to complete!" Izzy looked up, to see that Tai had returned to the campfire with his food, taking advantage of the only way to avoid Izzy's over-extended explanations: literally avoiding them. Izzy stood up, unplugged the D-Arc from the port on his computer, and walked over to Henry.

"Hey, here's your Digivice back." Izzy said before grabbing his plate of food.

"Thanks. Any luck?" Henry responded.

"Yeah. I'm running the initial scan now. Hopefully, if everything is in order, we'll know where Takato is in a half hour or so," Izzy said, being careful not to ramble on and on.

"That's great!" Henry said excitedly.

Izzy took the open seat next to Matt and Davis, who was currently trying to flip baked beans off of his fork and into his mouth. Rika approached from the outskirts of the clearing with Renamon, smelling the food and realizing just how hungry she was.

"That's weird," she said to nobody in particular, "We usually don't get hungry when we come to the Digital World."

"I guess this world is more different from ours than we thought." Terriermon said between bites.

* * *

><p>Henry stood up to help Joe and Cody gather the plates, as Izzy placed his computer, with a map of the island lighting up the display, in the middle of a large tree stump.<p>

"So we're here," he pointed to an area to the east on the map. "And the Primary Village is over here," he pointed to an area on the western side. "The quickest way around Infinity Mountain is to the north, but the southern route is much safer."

"Are you sure we can't just fly over the mountain?" Rika said grouchily. "_That_ would be the quickest way."

"That would leave us wide open for attack, and we may not have enough strength after flying that far," Agumon said, with the rest of group agreeing. Rika reluctantly concurred as well, and the group returned to figuring out the best plan.

"Both routes are pretty close to the same length anyway," Sora pointed out, "the only difference would be a few hours or so, right?"

"On top of an approximate eight day walk, that doesn't seem like all that much." Izzy added.

"I want to get there as quickly as possible, but if we're not going over the mountain, I'll vote for the northern route." Rika concluded.

"I'll second that," Renamon joined in.

"I'd rather not go through all that snow," TK said, "but if it'll get us there faster, that's the way we'll go."

The rest of the group agreed, allowing Izzy to make the final declaration.

"It's settled then." Izzy declared. "We'll take the north route."

The group heard a small, high-pitched beep, followed by a small icon appearing in the corner of Izzy's display.

"Oh, hey!" Izzy exclaimed. "The scan's done!"

_"Already?"_ Rika looked down to her D-Arc, which had been performing a scan for the past four hours. _"Stupid piece of crap…"_

"Okay, I'll run the analyzer and…It found him!" Izzy said excitedly.

"Great! Where is he?" Henry asked, equally animated.

"Let's see, he's…" Izzy paused.

"Izzy?"

"…Oops." Izzy chuckled nervously.

"What do you mean, 'Oops'?" Rika asked angrily.

Izzy scratched the back of his neck. "I scanned the island, and it's found Takato's data," he began, "but I forgot to put in a tracking feature. It knows Takato's here, it just doesn't know where."

Rika was sorely tempted to throttle the poor boy.

"That's definitely an 'Oops'." Henry said, trying to defuse the situation.

"I'll get started on a locator." Izzy said, before bundling his computer back to its original spot. Rika sighed, and went over and sat down on her sleeping bag. Henry did the same, leaning against a tree, staring into space. Terriermon bounced around for a bit, before yawning loudly.

"We'll head out tomorrow," Tai said aloud.

Henry lay down and covered himself with the sleeping bag, slowly drifting off…

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><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER ELEVEN~<strong>

**Well, here's another one. Sorry if the story seems a little slow. Don't worry; it'll pick up the pace from here. Not much else to say, except make sure to review if you have some gripes with the fic, or PM me if you have a question. I don't know why, but I feel kind of…I don't know, like I'm begging for reviews; I'm not. Don't worry about hurting me by criticising my work, as long as it's constructive criticism. Until next time! Thanks for reading! **


	12. Expedition

**Hello again! I think I've hit the point in writing where I've lost most of my motivation to write, but I need to push through to get my 'Second Wind'. Hopefully the loss of enthusiasm, combined with my general 'Fuck-It' attitude won't completely derail the production of this fic. I'm debating splintering off and doing smaller one-shots as well to try and regain some motivation, but I don't know if I should leave before this is finished. I'm also realizing that I should never have undertaken something of this magnitude for my first ever fanfiction. Anyway, here's the next chapter.**

**I don't own Digimon.**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 12<p>

"Takato?" Rika called out to the boy, who had disappeared from view.

"I'm back here! I'll be out in a minute!" Takato shouted back cheerfully. Rika honestly couldn't remember being happier. She stood in front of the counter of the Matsuki Bakery, looking around to the delicious-looking breads and pastries. The aroma of freshly baked bread wafted through Rika's nose, prompting her to inhale to full capacity to take it all in. The sounds of hustling and bustling came from the area behind the counter, followed by clattering of pots and pans and the sounds of a nervous Takato apologising to his parents. Rika couldn't help but smirk. Takato peeked out from behind the doorway to the kitchen, smiling as he met Rika's eyes.

"Alright, I'm done my shift," Takato said excitedly.

"So where do you want to go?" Rika asked delightedly.

"Well, we can go anywhere we want to, right?" Takato asked. "But it's up to you, being your dream and all."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Rika said, without a care in the world. "Come on, let's go."

"Where are we going?" Takato said nervously. "Please say it doesn't involve flying."

"Don't worry; it's not far from here."

"Rika opened her eyes, and she was sitting in a familiar place: she was sitting on the bench in her backyard, overlooking the crystal-clear water of her pond. She rested her head against Takato, and hummed soothingly. She shut her eyes, and hoped this dream would last forever. Takato slowly rocked back and forth to the rhythm of Rika's humming, with her in his arms.

"Rika!"

Rika stirred, opening her eyes in confusion. She lifted herself into a sitting position on the bench, Takato nowhere to be seen. She focused her eyes on Renamon, hovering over the pond. The moonlight's reflection glistened Renamon's yellow and white fur.

"Where's Takato?" Rika asked, welling up inside.

"He was never here Rika," Renamon revealed to the distraught girl. "I watched you from the rooftops. You walked here by yourself."

"You're lying! He was there, he was-"

"He's gone Rika, and he's not coming back!" Renamon suddenly turned angry.

"How do you know? We're going to rescue him!"

Renamon started glowing red, distorting and morphing into an unrecognisable form. The form continued distorting and changing, until it decided on a frightening figure. Rika looked up in horror at a shockingly distorted Takato. His eyeballs were jet-black, his hair in disarray, torn clothing, mangled arms and legs bled profusely. Rika couldn't avert her gaze, whether out of disability or pure fascination she couldn't tell.

"You can't rescue me, Rika." Takato shouted to the horrified girl. "You see what I've become? You could have saved me Rika. You could have stopped this!"

"But…how?" Rika let the tears flow down her cheeks, gleaming in the moonlight.

Takato growled. "You should have known by now! All you needed to do…was love me."

The bloodied Takato suddenly reverted to the clean, spritely Takato Rika remembered fondly. Takato floated down to the crying girl, suddenly soft and passionate.

"Why didn't you love me Rika?" He asked drearily.

"I did! I loved you from the day I met you! I could never stop loving you, Takato!" Rika shouted desperately.

"It's too late for that now." A long echo followed Takato's cold tone.

Takato faded away, into tiny specks of nothingness. Rika screamed out to him, as she felt herself fading as well. Darker, darker…

* * *

><p>Rika awoke in a daze, shivering in the crisp, cold air. She sat up in her sleeping bag, the light from the rising sun painting an illuminating orange light over the camp. She looked up to see Renamon watching her intently from the trees.<p>

"You're awake." Renamon said robotically.

"Yes." Rika responded, seeing more behind Renamon's words than just what was in plain sight.

"The others are packing up. You should do the same." Renamon stated.

"Okay."

Rika packed up her sleeping bag before joining the others eating around the campfire. The group sat in the awkward silence for a few minutes, before Tai piped up.

"So, we'll head out in ten?" he asked to nobody in particular.

"Sure." Matt replied.

The group finished their meals, and then began their final preparations and within five minutes, they were ready to leave.

"And we're off!" Tai said enthusiastically.

The Digidestined and Tamers set off for the north, using Izzy's computer as their only means of navigation. Rika and Henry hung near the back of the group with Terriermon, Renamon and Guilmon. The two teams unintentionally segregated themselves, forming their own bubbles of conversation. Noticing this, Kari tried to break the ice.

"How about we play a game?" she suggested. The group then spent six tedious hours playing games like 'I Spy', and the equally stimulating 'Twenty Questions'. Just as Rika was about to suggest they cease the games, Izzy ended their suffering by announcing they had arrived at their stop for the night.

"We can rest in here," Izzy said unfazed, as the others looked up in awe at the sheer size of the mansion that stood before them. The mansion was of Victorian design and painted a fading chestnut brown. The group walked up to the front door, which towered over them all. With it being at least fifteen meters tall, Tai had to reach as high as he could to reach the door handle. The timeworn door creaked ominously open, and the group entered cautiously. Suddenly, the main hall lit up, and revealed beautiful red velvet carpet, fabulous magenta walls and tapestries, the whole shebang.

The group was delighted to find an enormous washroom, with separate baths for everyone. After towelling off with what TK described as 'towels the likes of which humans could only dream of, until now', everyone headed into the 'Room of Slumber', gobsmacked by their individual beds. At least fifty four-poster beds lined the insides of the room, with mattresses two feet thick. Davis jumped into his bed, nearly completely disappearing from view in the bed.

"It doesn't get better than this…" Davis thought.

* * *

><p>Much to Davis' surprise, he found his claim falsified with each passing pit stop. From mansions to feasts, to hot springs hidden in freezing tundras, to astoundingly accommodating Gekomon and Otamamon (Kari thanked her lucky stars Mimi's schedule freed up at the last minute so she could join them on their trip). Each time, Davis found himself thinking the same thing, only for it to be refuted the next evening. Renamon worried more and more with each passing stop about Rika, whose increasingly distant behaviour, while understandable, was not something that Renamon could revert if taken too far. Rika found herself consistently haunted by the same nightmare every night, causing her to wake each morning in a state. She would then distance herself a little further, and so on. By the seventh day, Rika had concealed herself to the point of only responding with various grunts, and keeping intelligible responses to a minimum, to Renamon's dismay.<p>

* * *

><p>The majority of the group sighed loudly as Mimi griped for the seventh time in eight hours about how tired she was, and how her feet hurt, and how her hair was in disarray from the wind. This was the limit for the spiky-haired boy at the front of the pack, and he turned to Mimi to shout. But before he could let a sound out of his mouth, he was stared down by a ferocious glare from the pink-haired girl.<p>

"How much longer do we have?" Tai said, defeated.

"We should be there in a half-hour." Izzy replied calmly.

Renamon spent the majority of the trek in the treetops, keeping a watchful eye on Rika. Rika spent the entire trip deep inside her own head, trying desperately (and mostly unsuccessfully) to fight off thoughts of fear and doubt.

_"He's not coming back, and if you don't face that now, then we're all fucked!"_ 'Rika' shouted in her mind.

_"But, Izzy found him! He's gonna be there!" _ 'Rika' responded meekly.

_"Izzy is wrong! You're heading into a trap, and if you don't call this off soon, you'll all be killed! Do you want to be responsible for killing everyone here just because you 'had a feeling' your dead friend would be there?"_

_ "He's not dead! He's alive, I know it! And he'll be there waiting for us!"_

_ "You don't know that Rika. You doubt yourself. What if you're wrong, and I'm right?"_ 'Rika' switched to a different method of attack.

_"I…he…I mean…if…but he… and they…"_ 'Rika' stammered, at a loss for words.

_"Face it Rika, Takato's gone. He's dead, and that isn't going to change."_

_ "…no."_

_ "Yes! He's gone forever!"_

_ "No."_

_ "Admit it, Rika. For as long as you live, you'll never see him again."_

_ "NO!"_

_ "YES!"_

* * *

><p>"Alright, we're here." Izzy announced to the group. A loud "Finally!" could be heard conveniently over where Tai was standing. "I think you'll find this stop a little…nostalgic." Izzy added.<p>

Davis, Yolei, Cody and Ken had no idea what had gotten into the rest of the Digidestined as they stood in awe of the sight.

"It's just a little lake," Davis huffed in disappointment. "What's so special about it?"

In reality, the lake held much more significance to the older Digidestined. The familiar lake had a small island in the middle, with nothing but a trolley car in the middle. The crystal-clear water revealed fish swimming just below the surface. Matt got a rush of memories from the battle with Seadramon and the first time Gabumon Digivolved into Garurumon. These memories resonated a little less with the others; overtaken by memories of what they thought would be their final farewell with their Digimon, riding the trolley back to the real world.

After settling down inside the trolley, Tai and Agumon left to build a fire, leaving the others sitting on the surprisingly comfortable seats.

* * *

><p>"But," Yolei interjected into Matt's description of the last time they were here, "if you guys rode the trolley back to the real world, why is it still here?"<p>

"I guess it came back." Matt shrugged his shoulders.

Henry opted to stand instead of try to disturb Rika, who had taken up an entire row of seats by lying down. She lay in a trance, deep in thought, as she had been for most of the past few days. Henry thought she seemed upset, but passed it off as being tired from the long journey. His attention shifted to Terriermon, who was swinging from post to post with his ears to entertain himself.

Fishing for food for the evening turned into a competition, with everyone building their own rod (Joe was barred from using the one he had brought from the real world), and competing to see who could catch the most fish. In the end TK won; since he was lucky enough not to have Guilmon 'silently' snatch a few of his fish every so often. Davis wanted a second competition without the crimson glutton, but everyone else was happy with the fish they had caught. Ultimately, and unsurprisingly, it was Kari who changed Davis' mind by expressing her opinion on the matter. One campfire cookout later and everyone was ready to go to bed on a full stomach. Henry settled in on a free seat, before looking around. He noticed something was off, different from what it should be. Be couldn't quite put his finger on it, until…

"Uh, guys?" Henry said nervously.

"What is it?" Tai said mid yawn.

"Where are Rika and Renamon?"

* * *

><p>"…<em>A…person? Who…"<em>

Takato tried to let the something in, but something was keeping something from revealing something to him. Something was staying nothing but something. Something important, but nothing was known about something otherwise. Nothing was creeping in, and Takato tried to resist it. Something could help, he could feel it.

_"This person…she seems…familiar. Who are you?"_ Takato tried endlessly to identify something. Something was a person, but still nothing. This person wanted to reveal something, but revealed nothing. Nothing was revealed in something's place. Takato desperately wanted to know something; he wanted something different from everything and nothing. He desperately searched everything, but there was nothing about this something. Everything was nothing to him. Something was everything to him. And nothing was something to be feared.

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER TWELVE~<strong>

**I'm gonna try to get in gear and finish up this story. It shouldn't be more than a few chapters more, so it'll be over pretty soon. Thanks to everyone for sticking with me, and for all your kind reviews. Until next time!**


	13. Separation

**Nothing much to say here, except hello, and here's chapter thirteen! I hope you like it! This chapter's gonna be quite a bit shorter than previous chapters, and for that I am very sorry. I do have a good-ish reason for it though.**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 13<p>

Renamon begrudgingly bowed to Rika's wishes as she left to search for Takato alone, armed only with her D-Arc, scanning endlessly for signs of the boy. Renamon could understand Rika's predicament emotionally, but not logically. Rika was worried about him, and to her, it was reason enough to abandon the others and risk her own life just to possibly get there a few hours earlier. Renamon desperately tried to reason with the hard-headed girl.

"Rika, we need to go back!" Renamon tried for the umpteenth time. "You're cold, you're tired, and we don't know where we're going!"

"We'll find his signal!" Rika replied, her voice echoing in the trees. "We just need to keep looking! That computer geek said the signal was this way, so it's only a matter of time before we know for sure!"

"What if you're wrong? He may be miles away from range, and you could be walking in circles!" Renamon said.

"I don't care!" Rika said, getting angry. "If I can find Takato faster then I'll take any risk this world throws at me!" Rika barely finished her sentence before hearing a loud rustling in the bush to her left. She stopped, and Renamon sensed danger. Renamon jumped between Rika and the noise to protect her. The near pitch darkness made Rika uneasy, but she was determined to find Takato, and a wild Digimon wasn't going to get in the way of that.

"Who's there?" Rika said to the bush. "Show yourself!"

"Well well well, what have we here? Aren't you out past your bedtime little girl?"

Rika stiffened up. "Come out and fight, you coward!"

"Rika, we should get out of here…" Renamon said on edge.

The bushes were pushed away, and out came three menacing looking Digimon. The one in front was a womanly Digimon, with glowing red eyes, shredded jet-black wings and threatening scarlet claws. Behind her stood two other Digimon that didn't look too different from the one in front. Each possessing red eyes and claws, the trio looked very gruesome. Four identical phantom-like Digimon floated behind these three, each posing with red hoods and slick sickles and chains.

Rika cancelled the running scan, instead analyzing the Digimon that stood before her.

"LadyDevimon, SkullSatamon, MarineDevimon and Phantomon! All Ultimate level!" Rika exclaimed.

Renamon poised herself for attack. LadyDevimon laughed at the sight.

"You think you can take us on?" The Digimon taunted. "Very well then. Amuse us!"

LadyDevimon ordered the Phantomon to attack first. The four hovered to the front of the group, poising their scythes in sync.

**"Shadow Scythe!"** The four lunged for Renamon with their sickles. Renamon sidestepped easily.

"Is that all you've got?" Renamon taunted back. "I was hoping for a challenge. **Diamond Storm!**"

Renamon sent a flurry of glowing sharpened leaves at the Digimon, embedding them in the foes' sides. The Phantomon cried out in pain as each one burst with a small pop, causing even more damage. The enemies were hurt, but not slain, and they regained their composure and tried again. This time, each one took a different stance, preparing to attack from different angles to ensure a hit.

**"Shadow Scythe!"** Renamon dodged the first, sidestepped the second and leaped over the third, rolling out of the way of the fourth. Finding her balance, Renamon engaged the first in close-quarters combat.

** "Power Paw!" **Renamon's paws started to glow more fervently with each successful swing. Soon her hands and feet were engulfed in cerulean flame, quickly overpowering and destroying the first Phantomon. Renamon prepared to absorb the data, but found that the data would not come to her; it instead floated away innocently, before disappearing from view altogether. In her confusion, Renamon was unable to avoid the impact of the next Phantomon's swing. The weighted chain end of the Digimon's sickle smacked firmly into Renamon's cheek, sending her into a tree to her left. She dusted herself off, ready for another bout.

"Let's take this up a notch!" Rika pulled out her card deck.

**"Digimodify!"** Rika swiped a card through the side of her D-Arc. **"Digivolution activate!"**

** DIGIVOLUTION**

** "Renamon, Digivolve to…Kyubimon!"**

Kyubimon now stood where Renamon did not moments ago. The Phantomon shuddered nervously, but the three demon Digimon behind them were unfazed.

"Don't just stand there," LadyDevimon ordered. "Attack!"

Kyubimon easily evaded the three Phantomon's attacks, and unleashed a flurry of her own, handily destroying each one. As their data floated away, Rika flashed a smirk of approval.

LadyDevimon sighed frustrated. "So you managed to defeat those weaklings. We will be a much better challenge!"

The three surrounded the fox Digimon. Rika started to get worried, knowing Kyubimon probably needed help. The three enemies quickly overpowered Kyubimon, sending her careening into a wall. "Pathetic humans and their pet Digimon." LadyDevimon spat. "They're weaklings, all of them."

Rika pulled out her blue card, hoping it would be the push they needed to win.

** "Digimodify!"** Rika quickly slashed the card through her D-Arc. **"Matrix Digivolution activate!"**

A blinding white light engulfed Kyubimon. Slowly her form changed, as she digivolved to Ultimate.

**"Kyubimon, Digivolve to…Taomon!"**

Taomon stood up, a fresh burst of power flowing through her, knocking back the three enemies with her mind.

"Oh, this will be fun." LadyDevimon cackled.

**"Darkness Wave!" **Dark energy shot from LadyDevimon's fingertips, shooting toward Taomon with blistering speed.

**"Evil Wing!"** MarineDevimon fired a mass of darkness at Taomon at the same time.

**"Bone Blaster!"** SkullSatamon loosed a blast of light from the jewel in its staff, hurtling toward Taomon.

**"Talisman Spell!" **Just as the attacks reached Taomon, she generated a glowing force field, repelling all three attacks effortlessly.

"I underestimated you," she said menacingly, "but no longer. This forest shall be your grave!"

* * *

><p>Henry stared blankly into the dying campfire. The others huddled around it too, and Henry tried not to tune it all out and fall asleep right there. But there were more pressing matters at hand.<p>

"Why would she just leave like that?" Matt wondered aloud.

"She's obviously going out to look for Takato," Henry replied mindlessly.

"But we're heading to the Primary Village in the morning, and she doesn't know the way."

"Well, that's Rika for you." Terriermon started. "Stubborn as can be, that one."

Henry thought about going after her, but without knowing for certain where she went, it'd be just as foolish as what she had done. Henry tried to think of something he could do, when it hit him.

"Of course!" Henry mentally kicked himself for not thinking of it sooner. He quickly pulled out his D-Arc, and pulled up the locator program. He selected Rika's D-Arc's bitlength, and began the scan. Not a minute later, he had a lock on her signal.

"I've got her!" He exclaimed. The others looked over to the holographic compass-like image displayed on Henry's device. A small red arrow pointed toward the forest, indicating Rika's location.

"We'd better hurry," Tai said, "she could be in trouble out there!"

The group pushed off, headed in the direction of the signal.

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER THIRTEEN~<strong>

**Yeah, this one's quite a bit shorter. Sorry about that. It's a little rushed too, so you could consider this my worst chapter so far (Or least-best, depending on your general outlook on life). I'm going on vacation tomorrow morning, and there won't be any internet where I'm going, so I wanted to get something out before I left. I'll be back in a week and a bit, so my pathetic attempt at a release schedule shouldn't be thrown off by this trip. I'm also bringing my laptop, so hopefully I'll have time to write some more. Anyway, I'll see you guys around! Thanks for sticking with me so far!**


	14. Altercation

**Hey guys! I'm back from vacation, so here's the next chapter! Don't worry; this story will be over in (hopefully) two or three more chapters, so it's almost over!**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 14<p>

Taomon panted from exhaustion, barely able to move from where she lay. LadyDevimon continued to taunt her, daring her to get up and face her. Rika stood frozen in place, speechless from fear. SkullSatamon and MarineDevimon approached her, staring menacingly at her with their soulless crimson eyes. Rika wanted desperately to run, but something inside her wouldn't let her give up. Slowly, she reached for her D-Arc. Her fear flashed to anger in an instant. Suddenly the two Digimon looming over her didn't appear so menacing. They looked afraid. They _were_ afraid.

_"I feel...warm."_ Rika thought. _"It's strange. Almost like-"_

Rika's D-Arc flashed a blinding white light, causing SkullSatamon and MarineDevimon to shield their eyes in pain.

_"Is this a dream?"_ Rika wondered. _"If I'm not in control, what is?"_

"Enough!" LadyDevimon cut through the light, causing it to fade away. "I grow tired of these silly games! Surrender or die, human!"

Rika felt her anger bubbling up to the surface again. She didn't know what was going on; she felt almost as if her body was on auto-pilot, and she was just sitting back and watching herself. As her D-Arc glowed brighter and brighter, she noticed something else glowing as well: her locket! Rika felt herself get lighter and lighter, until she hovered a meter off the ground. She watched as Taomon glowed as well, returning to her more common form as Renamon. The two rose up, and Rika pulled her D-Arc close.

**BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION**

Rika and Renamon converged in the air, glowing with a white light. The two forms slowly became one, changing into a new form.

"**Renamon, Biomerge to…Sakuyamon!"**

Sakuyamon slowly flitted back down to land, shining brightly. Rika floated in the DigiCore, lending her strength to the battle at hand. LadyDevimon opted to send SkullSatamon and MarineDevimon first to test Sakuyamon's strength. Sakuyamon dodged the first attack, smacking SkullSatamon with her staff. MarineDevimon lashed out with his tentacles, ensnaring Sakuyamon. Instead of struggling, Sakuyamon unleashed her four spirits attack, destroying MarineDevimon with her four beast spirits. She turned to SkullSatamon, who was ready to fire a sphere of dark energy straight toward her. Sakuyamon sidestepped the blast just in time, but lost her footing. LadyDevimon took the opportunity to slash Sakuyamon in the back with her claws. Sakuyamon stumbled forward, regaining her footing and lashing out at SkullSatamon with her free hand. SkullSatamon tumbled to the side, and Sakuyamon turned back to LadyDevimon. Rika was boiling with rage, but something seemed off as she floated inside Sakuyamon. She didn't feel in control of her actions, but not in the same way as she usually felt when biomerged with Renamon. Something else was influencing her, but she didn't know what. She dodged LadyDevimon's left claw, catching her in the chin with her fist, sending her into a tree. LadyDevimon stood up and brushed off, not a scratch on her.

"Is that all you've got?" she said menacingly.

Sakuyamon felt a searing pain in her back as she was hit with SkullSatamon's Bone Blaster attack from behind. She fell forward before feeling a sharp thud as her cheek connected with LadyDevimon's boot. Sakuyamon panted, trying to get up. LadyDevimon laughed threateningly, pressing her foot into Sakuyamon's back.

**"Garuru Tomahawk!"**

A loud explosion made Sakuyamon's ears ring as LadyDevimon was swept aside by a massive explosion. MetalGarurumon leaped over Sakuyamon and tackled SkullSatamon into a tree. Matt leapt off and ran to the others, who followed behind WarGreymon. WarGreymon ran over and joined MetalGarurumon, and Henry ran up to Sakuyamon with Terriermon and Guilmon.

"Are you alright?" he asked, not letting on how frustrated he was with her for going alone.

"I'm fine." Sakuyamon said with difficulty. She struggled to her feet, preparing to go back into the fray.

"You look pretty hurt," Sora approached with worry. "You should rest. WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon can take over."

"I'm not letting them have all the fun," Sakuyamon said, before turning and joining the fray.

"Hang on; I thought we defeated these guys!" Cody thought aloud.

"Well, sometimes Digimon do come back." Izzy responded. "It depends on the circumstances."

"Maybe they're not the same Digimon." Tai suggested.

"Another distinct possibility." Tentomon replied.

"Does it matter?" Matt asked angrily. "Let's just beat them now!"

**"Metal Wolf Claw!"** MetalGarurumon fired a large beam of unbelievably cold air at SkullSatamon. SkullSatamon dodged, but stepped directly into WarGreymon's line of fire.

**"Terra Force!"** WarGreymon annihilated SkullSatamon with an enormous ball of fire. SkullSatamon evaporated into tiny specks of data immediately. MetalGarurumon pushed WarGreymon out of the way of an incoming Evil Wing attack. Sakuyamon swung her staff into the back of LadyDevimon's head, knocking her forward, but she quickly turned and lashed Sakuyamon with her claws. MetalGarurumon sunk his Chrome-Digizoid fangs into LadyDevimon's arm, making her cry out in pain. WarGreymon took the opportunity to launch an attack.

** "Great Tornado!"** WarGreymon spun faster and faster, until he was spinning at intense speeds. He flew into the sky, before turning and diving toward LadyDevimon. WarGreymon's aim was true, and LadyDevimon ended up face down in the dirt. LadyDevimon struggled to get up, but Sakuyamon stopped her. She lifted her staff up high, preparing to finish LadyDevimon off.

Rika was in a daze. She still didn't really comprehend what was going on. She noticed something glowing in front of her, floating in the Digi-Core. It was the piece of Takato from her locket; Rika was sure of it. Sakuyamon glowed faintly red. The yin-yang symbols on her pauldrons and chestplate glowed more brightly, forming into Digi-Hazard symbols. Her staff glowed and morphed into a shining silver lance. She aimed it at the prostrate LadyDevimon.

**"Lightning Joust!"** Sakuyamon discharged a large blast of lightning from the tip of the lance, straight into LadyDevimon's chest. LadyDevimon screamed out in pain, vaporizing instantly.

"NO!" were her last words as the last of her data floated up into the sky harmlessly.

Sakuyamon glowed brightly, dedigivolving back into Renamon and Rika. Rika reached for her locket, and was relieved to see Takato's light glowing from the opening. She turned to the others, and was momentarily confused by the twenty-two shocked expressions that stared directly at her and Renamon.

"What. The. Fuck. Was. That?" Davis asked.

"Oh yeah." Henry nervously scratched the back of his neck. "We forgot to mention something…"

* * *

><p>Only Izzy and Tentomon were able to keep up with Henry and Rika's explanation of their conversion to data. Even Terriermon struggled to comprehend it, and he already knew the story.<p>

"So it's kind of like DNA-Digivolving, but with a human and Digimon instead of two Digimon." Tai suggested.

"That wouldn't be inaccurate." Henry said.

"Now that we have that out of the way," Matt looked around at the pitch-black forest. "What should we do next?"

"We could set up camp," Joe proposed. "I brought all of our gear along, so there's no need to go back to the lake."

"Sure. We'll camp out here, and leave first thing in the morning." Matt concluded, with the rest of the group (With the exception of Rika) agreeing without argument.

"I still don't understand why we have to stop here," Rika grumbled as she nestled into her sleeping bag. "We're not even that far. We could make it by morning if we hurried."

"_Now_ look who's sounding like a broken record." Terriermon retorted, earning him a knock on the back of his head from Henry.

* * *

><p><em>"Please, tell me who you are! I have to know!"<em> Takato pleaded with something. Something remained something, but nothing more. Takato desperately desired something, something different from everything and nothing. Something crept closer, inch by inch, as Takato felt something coming back to him.

_"A…girl…but…who...is it…no…why…"_ Takato incessantly searched for remnants of something from within everything, but came up empty. Everything did not include something. Something was not everything. Takato felt like something was something he used to remember, but for some reason, he couldn't. Suddenly, he saw a rip. A space where nothing sat in everything. _"There! She must have been there!"_

Takato remembered kneeling over a fallen Guilmon, cradling his head in his arms. Time seemed to have stopped, as nothing else mattered but getting his friend back after Digivolving him to Megidramon.

"Guilmon!" Takato said to his collapsed partner. "You're back!"

"Is it time for lunch Takato?" Guilmon said weakly. Takato chuckled, nodding his head softly.

"You can have anything you want Guilmon."

"-, - -!"

Takato remembered seeing Beelzemon's Double Impact attack careening straight toward him and Guilmon. He fondly remembered the first time he and Guilmon biomerged, becoming Gallantmon to stop him.

_"But…"_ Takato strained his memory to the limit." _"There was more…What…there…"_

"T-a-, -h o-!"

_"What…was it…I can't…" slowly, the memory reappeared. _Takato remembered kneeling over Guilmon. He remembered something alerting him of Beelzemon's attack!

"Takato, watch out!"

_ "Is it…Je…ri?"_ Takato thought. _"Yes…Jeri…"_

Suddenly, more and more gaps appeared in his memories, until thousands resurfaced. Various everyday memories were filled with tiny holes. Takato slowly patched each memory with the image of Jeri, reforming the memories.

_"Yes…I found you…finally…"_

Takato repaired each and every memory, and he no longer felt confused. He remembered pushing Jeri out of the way of the blast, killing himself in the process. He remembered Jeri warning him of Beelzemon's attack. He remembered seeing Jeri in his dream before he became a Tamer. He remembered…loving Jeri.

_ "…Right?"_ Takato questioned himself.

* * *

><p>In large contrast to Guilmon, Renamon never truly slept. She rested, as everyone has to, but she always remained alert to her surroundings. It was a trait that befitted her as the watchful eye of the shadows. A trait that saved her partner's life, and the lives of her friends in many an occasion. Renamon sat motionless on a tree branch near her Tamer, using her lesser senses to keep watch. Renamon opened her eyes at the sound of rustling beneath her. She looked down to Rika, who was tossing and turning in her sleeping bag. Renamon worried for her Tamer, but it was out of her hands.<p>

_"I cannot force Rika open like Takato can,"_ Renamon thought to herself. _"I just hope that he's not too late, if he comes back at all…"_

Rika shot out of her bed, snapping Renamon out of the clouds. Rika breathed heavily, heart racing. She shivered despite it being rather warm out. She remembered every detail of the now-familiar nightmare. The image of a bleeding mangled Takato flashed past her eyes again, sending a chill down her spine. She stopped a tear from leaving her eye as she rose from her sleeping bag. Renamon watched silently from above, contemplating making her presence known to the girl. Ultimately, she decided against it, giving Rika time with her thoughts. Rika ambled over to Henry, kicking him on the side of his head softly with her socked foot. Henry stirred, slowly coming back to life.

"Get up." Rika said coolly, with a hint of irritation in her voice.

"Well, since you put it so nicely," Henry scratched his head with one hand and braced with the other as he rose from his sleeping bag.

Terriermon was the next in line for Rika's oh-so polite wake up call. He woke up with a fright as he fell off the log he had been sleeping on. Then came Guilmon, who received a surprisingly calm and polite awakening. Rika figured his lack of maturity, compounded with how he took recent events warranted no less than care and kindness, shocking a groggy Terriermon into complete awareness. The Digidestined awoke from the noise, and the group quickly had breakfast and began packing up.

* * *

><p>"On the road again!" Tai marched at the front of the pack. Izzy walked next to him, holding his laptop open with one hand and navigating it with the other.<p>

"According to my fresh scan this morning," Izzy started. "We should be there in a couple hours, assuming we don't stop on the way."

Tai and Izzy looked back as Mimi already filed her first complaint. "My feet hurt!" Tai sweatdropped.

"Yeah, you'd better add a few rest stops into your calculations," Tai said nervously.

Rika meandered along at the back of the group aside Renamon, trapped in her thoughts.

_"Even if he's there, will he even want to see me? I mean, it's my fault he's gone in the first place."_

_ "You know, there are only so many negative thoughts you can have about this. Don't you think you should stop before you have to resort to the really stupid ones?"_ Rika was a little surprised to hear 'Jeri' make a return.

_"You again? I thought I already silenced you by admitting that I like Takato!"_

'Jeri' giggled. _"Don't you remember? Telling yourself is only the first step. Can you guess what the next step is?"_

Rika's stomach knotted up. _"Not happening. Nuh-uh. There is no way I'm telling Takato."_

_ "Well, then I'll keep bothering you. Funny how things work out, isn't it? Although, I am wondering exactly _why_ you don't want to tell him."_

Rika mentally rolled her eyes. _"It's simple: He doesn't like me back."_

_ "How do you know? It's not like you've asked him before."_

_ "I…he…he still loves you, remember?"_

'Jeri' went quiet for a moment. _"That was a long time ago. We're just friends, and you know that."_

_ "He still loves you! I know it!"_

_ "No he doesn't. You're avoiding the question Rika. Why don't you think he likes you?"_

_ "Oh, come on! How could he? I've been a heartless bitch to him since the first day we met! Are you honestly trying to tell me he could love someone like me?" _Rika demanded.

_"So _that's_ your big reason? I expected you to concoct something better than that, Rika!"_ 'Jeri' taunted.

Rika flared up. _"Alright then. How could he possibly like me? What are your reasons?"_

_ "Think back Rika. Who was there from the beginning? Who opened you up, allowing you to become the Tamer you wanted to be? Who has save your life countless times, and asked for nothing in return? Who has always been there for you, even if you didn't think you need him? Takato. He was your first friend, despite your best efforts. No matter how much you pushed him away, he pushed back with double the force. He saved you from yourself. He didn't give up on you, even when you did!"_

_ "That's because he's my friend, and he knows I'd do the same for him."_ Rika defended.

_"You can call it whatever you want, but Takato isn't just a friend to you, even if you can't see it."_

Rika was falling back into defense. She was losing this battle, and 'Jeri' knew it. Rika let her defenses falter.

_"Okay, let's say I do tell him. What do I say? When would I say it?"_

_ "When the right moment comes, you'll know it."_

_ "What is that, some voodoo fortune cookie shit? That doesn't help me at all! How am I gonna tell him?"_

_ "So you will? Good."_ Before Rika could say more, 'Jeri' giggled and disappeared in a flash.

_"Really? You choose _now_ to leave me alone? Come on, I need help here!"_ Rika shouted into the void of her mind.

Rika bumped into Henry as she found the group had stopped.

"What's going on? Why have we stopped?"

"We're here!" Tai announced happily.

At the same time, Rika heard a beep coming from her pocket. She pulled out her D-Arc, and stared at the image displayed for a good thirty seconds, before snapping out of her stupor. "He's here!" Rika said.

"Well then, let's go get him!" Terriermon shouted.

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER FOURTEEN~<strong>

**Alrighty then. I got this out, and it's not much later than I hoped it would be out. Patience is one of the main reasons I love you guys. You're very forgiving of my lazy ass. Why are you so patient? Well, this fic's almost done, only one or two chapters left to go. So another two months before you'll know what happens. I kid, it'll only be a month and a half. All jokes aside, I'm hoping the next two will be released sooner than usual, and longer than usual. Wish me luck!**


	15. Reconstruction

**I'm really sorry this took so long to come out. I had issues come up in the past few weeks that I'd prefer not to delve into here, but that's all taken care of…for the most part. I was half-right though. This one is a lot longer than usual. Here you go! I still don't own Digimon.**

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><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 15<p>

Violet eyes stared up in awe at the large village. Tall buildings with the appearance of large stacked toys made up the bulk of what they could see, and trees bearing toys scattered around as well. The group walked through to the center of the town, and the Digidestined were surprised by how little there was to experience.

"Where is everybody?" Patamon wondered.

"It's a ghost town…" Henry thought aloud.

Not a single cradle sat in the field where thousands once stood. Not a noise, be it the cry of a baby or the laugh of a child was heard throughout the village.

The group split up, searching for anything to indicate where everyone had gone.

"Elecmon?" TK called out. "Where are you?"

A very familiar feeling of doubt settled into Rika's thoughts. She continued following her D-Arc, but after seeing the same buildings around her a third time in a few minutes, she put it away.

"Takato…" she said to herself nervously, "where are you?"

"Hey, guys!" Izzy shouted to the Tamers. "We've found something!"

Rika and Henry rushed to the building, seeing the Digidestined huddled in a circle. Rika pushed through to the center, noticing a small round object sitting pristinely on the cushiony floor.

"It's a Digi-Egg!" Izzy noted to the new arrivals.

Rika and Henry looked down to the object in question. It was roughly the size of a football, and deep crimson in color. Small black streaks adorned the outer shell. A D-Arc lay next to the Digi-Egg. The D-Arc had a golden ring around the display, with markings adorning it. Rika's heart jumped at the sight of it.

"That's Takato's D-Arc!" Rika said excitedly. "So is that…Takato?"

Izzy gave it some thought, before coming to a different conclusion. "Well, when Gennai brought us back to the time of our Digimon's creation and showed them to us, all of the Digi-Eggs had our accompanying Digivices and Tags with them, right?"

The Digidestined nodded in reply.

"Perhaps this Digivice has been repurposed," Tentomon finished Izzy's thought.

Rika's eyes lowered slightly, barely noticeable to the others.

"I guess we'll find out when it hatches," Henry said, before pulling out his communicator to inform Yamaki of the find.

Rika knelt down and picked up the D-Arc. On a hunch, she pointed it at Guilmon, whose ears rose in curiosity. Instantly, the D-Arc's display glowed, showing an image of the red dinosaur, along with various other information.

"It says it's still Takato and Guilmon's." Rika remarked, before pocketing the device. She then turned and lifted up the egg. Nearly instantly, she felt a familiar warm feeling rush over her. Almost as if all her troubles mystically vanished in the blink of an eye. Soon the feeling washed away, and she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what rested within the Digi-Egg.

* * *

><p><em>"Wait…Are you?"<em>

Takato felt something very close to him, but still far away. Something originally identified as Jeri was suddenly something different, but still the same. The pieces weren't fitting as well as Takato initially saw. Cracks formed along the edges of previously repaired fragments.

_ "Ryo, Jeri, Henry and I rescued Jeri from the D-Reaper. Jeri taught Jeri how to be a powerful Tamer. Jeri tried comforting Jeri after Jeri lost her partner Leomon. No… What is going on? This is all wrong!"_

Something was not Jeri. The pieces didn't fit, no matter how much Takato wanted them to. Something was so close. Takato tried desperately to see what something was, but it was just out of reach. _"Please…Let me see! Who are you?"_

* * *

><p>"Guys, get over here!"<p>

The group turned to Patamon, who flapped his wings to keep airborne so that everyone could see him. "I've found someone!"

Everyone followed Patamon, who had turned a corner and led the team into one of the nondescript buildings near the edge of town. In the back corner of the brightly colored room was a small red Digimon, lying battered and bruised on the floor.

"Elecmon!" TK exclaimed, before rushing over to where he and Patamon sat.

"…ngh…" Elecmon struggled to lift his head. His eyes rested on the familiar face. "…Well, if it isn't the pipsqueak…" he said weakly.

TK smirked. "What happened?" he turned serious again.

"We…were attacked," Elecmon strained to say. "It destroyed all of the Digi-Eggs, all…of the babies. I tried to stop it, but it was so fast, so powerful."

"Are you okay?" TK asked worriedly.

"I'm just a little roughed up, I'm fine." Elecmon said, trying to stand up. "Give me a few minutes and I'll be right as rain, you'll see."

* * *

><p>Elecmon proved himself right after all. It didn't take more than a half an hour to get him back on his feet. After eating some of Joe's emergency food (inciting Guilmon's envy), he felt much better. Rika decided to see if Elecmon knew anything about Takato, or the egg.<p>

"I don't know what to tell you," Elecmon said. "All the eggs just show up, and that one was no exception. That device appeared along with it, but stranger things have appeared around here, so I thought nothing of it, but then…"

"Then?" Rika prodded.

"It didn't hatch. It showed up a few weeks ago, and look at it! Digi-Eggs usually take a few hours to hatch, never more than a day, but this one still hasn't. You can usually hear the Digimon too, if you listen, but this one remains silent!"

Rika picked up the Digi-Egg, and held it close to her ear. _Nothing._

"I didn't know what to do with it, so I threw it into one of the empty buildings. When that monster attacked, I guess it didn't find it."

"This has never happened before? You must have had something like this." Henry added.

"Well, I've had a few eggs that wouldn't hatch before, but not very many. It's very rare."

"So what do you do? How do you hatch them?"

Elecmon paused before continuing. "I don't. They never hatch. Eventually, they disappear, and their data gets recycled."

"Recycled?" Rika inquired.

"Yeah. It's our way of life. We're beings of data, designed to serve a purpose, in our case, form Digimon. When data can no longer fulfill its purpose, it itself is repurposed." Elecmon clarified.

"That makes sense," Henry noted.

"Anyway, what about the Digimon that attacked? What was it?" Izzy questioned the red Digimon.

"I don't know. I've never seen a Digimon like it. It had a skull for a head, and an enormous sickle on its arm. It destroyed every last egg."

"Sound familiar Tentomon?" Izzy asked his partner.

"I don't know for sure, but it could be a few different Digimon, and I wouldn't want to go toe-to-toe with any of them." Tentomon said nervously.

"How uplifting." Matt said sarcastically.

"Who exactly were you thinking of?" Henry asked the beetle Digimon.

"Well, I may be wrong, although I've never been wrong in the past, but it could be another SkullSatamon, possibly the one we encountered yesterday. It could also be a MetalPhantomon. But, unfortunately, it's most likely-"

**"Bone Duster!" **A massive ball of fire exploded behind the group, blasting a hole in the wall of a nearby building.

Everyone looked to the source of the fireball, and saw a Digimon that vaguely matched the description given by Elecmon. It was a tall, cyborg Digimon of mostly beige color, with two-clawed feet and a massive scythe on its right arm. The gaping holes in its skull's eye sockets saw straight through its enemies, showing it all their weaknesses. Rika pulled out her D-Arc and analyzed the monster.

"Uh-oh. Reapermon, Cyborg type, Mega level. Attacks are Grim Slasher, Bone Duster, and Burning Cyclone!"

"I've never heard of a Reapermon," Renamon remarked. "It doesn't look too powerful."

"That doesn't matter," Tai said. "Agumon, let's take him down!"

"You too, Gabumon!" Matt said.

**Agumon, warp Digivolve to…WarGreymon!**

** Gabumon, warp Digivolve to…MetalGarurumon!**

The two Digimon quickly Digivolved through their levels, reaching the Mega level in seconds. WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon now stood where Agumon and Gabumon were moments ago. Terriermon and Guilmon looked up in awe.

**"Metal Wolf Claw!"** MetalGarurumon unleashed a beam of extremely cold air at Reapermon, but he dodged out of the way quickly.

Reapermon laughed, with a gruff, ghostly voice. "You're no match for me! **Bone Duster!**"

MetalGarurumon leapt out of the way, barely avoiding the fireball as it exploded harmlessly where he was before. WarGreymon attacked while he was distracted.

**"Great Tornado!"** WarGreymon spun up quickly, spinning at Mach speeds toward Reapermon. Reapermon dodged again, slashing at WarGreymon with his scythe.

**"Grim Slasher!"** WarGreymon was unable to dodge the onslaught of slices, before Reapermon charged forward, bringing WarGreymon with him. Reapermon quickly generated a ball of fire beneath WarGreymon, giving him no opportunity to avoid it.

**"Bone Duster!"** WarGreymon was helpless as the fireball exploded beneath him, sending him hurtling into the dirt twenty metres away. MetalGarurumon launched another Metal Wolf Claw attack while Reapermon's back was turned. The attack impacted Reapermon square in the back, but he shrugged it off as nothing. Turning around, Reapermon prepared another flame.

**"Bone Duster!"** MetalGarurumon was equally unable to avoid the attack, as it exploded, sending him an even greater distance. The dust cleared, and WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon were struggling to get up. Reapermon walked slowly toward the two, cackling maniacally along the way. As he approached them, he lifted his scythe above his head, preparing to strike them down.

**"Horn Buster!"** A powerful electric shock from the freshly Digivolved MegaKabuterimon temporarily distracted Reapermon, allowing WarGreymon to uppercut him with his claw.

"This isn't going well," Rika remarked nervously. "Let's go help them, Renamon!"

"Wait for us!" Terriermon shouted excitedly.

**BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION**

** Renamon, Biomerge to…Sakuyamon!**

** Terriermon, Biomerge to…MegaGargomon!**

** Cyberdramon, Biomerge to…Justimon!**

Sakuyamon, MegaGargomon and Justimon joined the fray, but Reapermon was still just too fast. Either he would dodge their attacks entirely, vaporise them with his scythe, or redirect them into each other. Four Mega level Digimon and one Ultimate just weren't enough.

"We'd better help them!" Sora said. The remaining Digidestined pulled out their Digivices, and held them above their heads.

**Biyomon, Digivolve to…Birdramon!**

** Birdramon, Digivolve to…Garudamon!**

** Palmon, Digivolve to…Togemon!**

** Togemon, Digivolve to…Lilymon!**

** Gomamon, Digivolve to…Ikkakumon!**

** Ikkakumon, Digivolve to…Zudomon!**

** Wormmon, Digivolve to…Stingmon!**

** Veemon, Digivolve to…ExVeemon!**

** Stingmon! ExVeemon! DNA-Digivolve to…Paildramon!**

** Paildramon, Digivolve to…Imperialdramon!**

** Hawkmon, Digivolve to…Aquilamon!**

** Gatomon! Hawkmon! DNA-Digivolve to…Silphymon!**

** Armadillomon, Digivolve to…Ankylomon!**

** Patamon, Digivolve to…Angemon!**

** Angemon! Ankylomon! DNA-Digivolve to…Shakkoumon!**

Reapermon laughed again. "You'll never be a match for me!"

Reapermon lunged forward with blistering speed, slashing Lilymon with his scythe before she could even react. Lilymon screamed in pain as she flew backward, Dedigivolving back to Palmon as she fell. Mimi rushed over to her, deeply worried about her partner. Without warning, Reapermon turned on a heel, rushing toward MegaKabuterimon. Not even his rock-hard shell could withstand Reapermon's power, and he met the same fate as Lilymon. Garudamon was next, landing a few punches, but otherwise unable to defend herself from Reapermon's attacks. Zudomon threw his hammer, smacking Reapermon in the back of the head, but the effort was wasted, as Reapermon struck him down next.

"He's too fast!" Silphymon exclaimed, barely avoiding a blast of fire himself.

The eight remaining Digimon continued attacking Reapermon, but nothing seemed to work.

"Are we even hurting this guy?" Justimon wondered aloud.

"Let's give him everything we've got!" WarGreymon shouted.

Everyone launched their most powerful attacks all at once, giving Reapermon no time to escape. Every attack hit head-on, kicking an enormous cloud of dust into the air. As it settled, Reapermon remained standing, but the attacks had clearly taken their toll. Reapermon's armor appeared dented, and his soulless eyes glowed ever so dimmer. He knelt down in pain, groaning heavily.

"Did that do it?" MegaGargomon asked cautiously.

Reapermon chuckled to himself softly as he knelt on the ground. Slowly, his grave voice got louder. Soon, he was laughing very loudly, keeping everyone on edge.

"Uhh, what's going on?" Silphymon asked nervously.

"HAHAHAHAAA! You'll never defeat me!" Reapermon cackled. Slowly, he rose to both feet again, before bringing his arms and legs closer to his chest, lifting off the ground a few metres. Reapermon began spinning, slowly at first, but quickly, and alarmingly, picking up great speed. Wind soon started kicking up around him, forming a small tornado.

"Uh-oh." MegaGargomon said.

**"BURNING CYCLONE!"**

* * *

><p>Hypnos and the Monster Makers were having all kinds of trouble finding the children back in the real world. From power outages, to server meltdowns, to ultimately disabling most of Hypnos' Network Interface just to route enough resources to the locator. Riley and Tally were in charge of maintaining the remaining real world functions, to ensure no wild ones interfered with their progress. Shibumi and Yamaki were overseeing the other Monster Makers as they worked on the Ark. Janyu watched over from his office, ensuring everyone stayed on task, for the most part. Ultimately his job currently boiled down to sitting there, making sure nobody got too chatty. The free time was doing numbers on his sanity. Normally, Janyu put up with these anxieties by burying himself in work, giving himself no time to worry about the danger his son and daughter go through, but this time his mind was given too much time to analyze the situation: Everything that could theoretically go wrong, all the ways he could lose his children forever, which were the most likely, which were the most devastating; it was maddening. Janyuu resorted to trying to keep himself busier by trying to locate the Seventh Plane. Dolphin was supposed to cover it, but he gave it up, being far too familiar with the strain Janyu could put on himself if he was given time to think. Janyuu tapped away furiously, slowly taking his mind off such matters as he searched through the Digital "Void" to find this plane. A window popped up in the corner of his screen, and Janyuu realised as he read it that he would never be able to take his mind off of it until his kids were home safe.<p>

"Yamaki! We've got a message from Henry!" Janyu approached Yamaki as he sipped coffee at his desk. Mitsuo Yamaki turned sharply, quickly placing the mug on the desk.

"What did he say? Do they have Takato?" He asked hastily.

"Come see for yourself."

"You're not sure? What do you mean you're not sure?" Yamaki talked to himself as he read through Henry's message:

_**We're at the Primary Village. We may have found Takato, but we're not sure.**_

Yamaki quickly typed a response:

_**What do you mean? Is he alive?**_

A few minutes later, they received a reply:

_**We don't know. We found his D-Arc next to a Digi-Egg. Could that be him?**_

Janyu called Shibumi into the room to answer.

Shibumi stood staring at the screen with a puzzled look on his face, before typing back:

_**Possibly. His data may be reacting like a Digimon's would. After all, you did find his Digivice there too.**_

Messages continued back and forth, further detailing the circumstances. Shibumi concluded with a final question:

_**Do you want us to send the Ark down to pick you up?**_

No reply.

"Maybe they're going through a tunnel," Shibumi said half-jokingly. "Let me know if they reply again." He added before returning to work.

Janyu slumped back into his chair, fearing the worst. Yamaki noticed, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"They're fine. We'll hear back soon, don't worry."

"I know…"

* * *

><p>An intense ringing filled Rika's ears, coupled with blurred vision and general disorientation. Dust surrounded her, and a familiar sense of dread washed over her as her senses returned. Renamon lay next to her, battered and beaten. The others were scattered around as well, wiped out by the power of Reapermon's Burning Cyclone attack. The buildings around them turned to rubble, with the ones that were still standing nearing the same fate. Rika looked to Reapermon, who stood in the centre, laughing maniacally. Fear flooded Rika's mind. Not fear for her own safety, nor her partner's, fear for-<p>

_"Takato."_ Rika thought to herself. _"Of course!"_ Rika looked around, desperately searching for where the Digi-Egg may have landed. She spotted it, not far from where she lay, next to Tai and Matt, who were tending to their fallen Digimon. She tried to muster the strength to move, but found herself unable to do anything. She felt powerless as Reapermon continued to laugh and gloat, paying no attention to anyone. Rika felt a new feeling bubbling up inside her, a much more familiar feeling. _Anger._ She grabbed hold of the feeling, allowing it to strengthen her as it used to years ago. She remembered like it was only yesterday, using her anger to keep going in the face of adversity. She needed it now, and it came to her. Slowly, she crawled along the ground, making sure not to alert the frighteningly powerful Digimon to her right. She reached the Digi-Egg, grabbing it with both hands and pulling it close to her. Slowly, she reached for her locket. Her fingers shook as she unclasped the locket, freeing the data inside. The data immediately started shining a bright crimson, before slowly approaching the egg. The egg glowed a similar color, before the data merged with the egg, making it gleam much brighter than before. Rika felt the egg become quite warm in her arms as something inside the egg awakened.

* * *

><p><em>"Ri…ka…"<em>

That was it. The something was Rika! Takato slowly remembered, and the memories filled in the gaps seamlessly.

_ "Ryo, Rika, Henry and I rescued Jeri from the D-Reaper! _Rika taught Jeri how to be a powerful Tamer! Rika tried comforting Jeri after Jeri lost her partner Leomon! I remember now!" All of the missing pieces had fallen into place. Takato saw clearly now. Nothing was disappearing quickly, until nothing was left of nothing. Something joined with everything again, making Takato whole again. Nothing was something of the past, and something was everything now. Takato felt himself return from nothing. He felt everything returning to him, like returning home after a long trip to a faraway place. Takato was again, but something felt different. There was no nothing left, but black still surrounded him. In fact, Takato felt rather…cramped.

_ "Where am I?" _Takato strained to see, and slowly he saw more than black. Takato felt strange, seeing something after all this time had passed. Takato saw Rika, much closer to him than he would ever expect Rika to be.

_"That's weird," _Takato thought. _"Why is she so big? Rika? What's going on?" _Takato tried calling out to Rika, but she didn't seem to hear him.

_"What is this place? What's going on out there?" _Takato directed his attention to the large skeletal monster standing far behind where Rika sat. As Takato became more reacquainted with his thought processes, he realized something was definitely wrong. He saw vaguely familiar bodies strewn about around this Grim Reaper-like thing, as well as Digimon.

_ "Ryo…Henry…Rika…They need my help!" _Takato felt strange. He felt as if wherever he was was reacting in the same way he was. He felt angry, and he felt anger around him.

_"I need to help my friends!"_

* * *

><p>Guilmon felt something strange. He felt like he did right before he Digivolved into WarGrowlmon for the first time. He felt Takato!<p>

"Takato! I'm coming!" Guilmon followed the feeling, as it led him to Rika and the Digi-Egg.

"Guilmon, what are you doing?" Rika asked the Dinosaur.

"I hear Takato! He wants to fight!" Guilmon said seriously, as his mind switched to 'Battle Mode.'

"More opponents?" a ghostly voice echoed directly behind Rika and Guilmon.

A sharp chill went up Rika's spine as she dared turn around to face Reapermon, who now stood less than two metres away from her. Guilmon's eyes narrowed and a low-pitched growl emerged from his throat. Rika's eyes gazed up to where Reapermon's would be, but Rika only saw black holes, devoid of anything. Rika looked around to all her friends, taken down by this monster. Rika was overcome with fear again, unable to move. Reapermon slowly raised his scythe, preparing to strike her down. Rika found herself unable to do anything but watch, waiting for the inevitable. Guilmon's eyes looked down to her, confused why she wasn't moving. He looked to Renamon, still out cold. Guilmon looked down to the egg still in Rika's arms. Guilmon felt Takato, and he knew what he had to do. Slowly, Guilmon reached over to the egg, and just as he came in contact with it with one of his claws, Reapermon attacked. Rika shut her eyes, hoping to wake up from her nightmare. A bright light engulfed the area, piercing Rika's mind.

"_Come on, Rika! You aren't giving up already, are you?"_

* * *

><p>Rika opened her eyes in time to see Reapermon's attack coming down at her, but another form was appearing between her and Reapermon. The Digi-Egg no longer sat in her arms, and Guilmon was nowhere to be found, both of their data's joining together.<p>

**BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION**

Rika felt herself pushed backward as a familiar entity materialised in front of her.

"**Guilmon, Biomerge to…Gallantmon!"**

Gallantmon's lance parried Reapermon's scythe, knocking him off balance. Gallantmon then spun on his heel, slamming Reapermon with his shield, sending him back a considerable distance. The Digidestined looked on in awe, as the shining knight Digimon gleamed in the light. Reapermon rose to his feet, challenging Gallantmon. Gallantmon accepted.

"**Lightning Joust!"** Gallantmon aimed his lance at Reapermon, firing a blast of lightning at Reapermon. Reapermon shrugged off the hit with only the lightest of flinches, before delivering his own attack. Lunging forward with incredible speed, Reapermon caught Gallantmon with his scythe.

"**Grim Slasher!"** Gallantmon cried out as he was sliced many times with Reapermon's scythe, before being knocked back with a long lunge. Reapermon then attacked immediately with a large ball of fire, giving Gallantmon no opportunity to defend himself. The Bone Duster attack exploded beneath Gallantmon, launching him into a pile of rubble. Gallantmon steadied himself, before striking back.

"**Lightning Joust!"** Gallantmon launched another attack, with the same result as the first. This time, however, he readied his lance for Reapermon's counterattack.

"**Grim Slasher!"** Reapermon charged, but Gallantmon deflected his scythe and struck back. Reapermon and Gallantmon locked weapons, butting against each other. Reapermon let up slightly, giving Gallantmon the opening he needed. He slammed Reapermon with his entire body, knocking him back. Then, he forced him back further with another Lightning Joust attack, stunning him momentarily. Gallantmon took the opening to ready his shield.

"**Shield of the Just!"** A massive beam of scarlet energy was released from the centre of Gallantmon's shield, piercing straight through Reapermon. Reapermon let out a loud cry in agony.

"You're finished!" Gallantmon shouted.

* * *

><p>"Who is that?" Tai wondered from the sidelines.<p>

"I don't know," Matt answered, "but I'm glad he's on our side."

Gallantmon panted heavily, exhausted from the battle. He turned back to the children standing across the rubble.

"Who are they? Hmm…" Gallantmon thought.

Gallantmon glanced over to Renamon, who had since woken up. Renamon was more or less shocked at the arrival of Gallantmon, and greatly relieved for Rika. Renamon looked around, and saw a figure standing behind Gallantmon.

"**Grim Slasher!"**

Gallantmon was knocked to the ground from behind, taken by surprise by Reapermon's attack. Gallantmon quickly righted himself, standing in front of Reapermon.

"You're in my way. Stand aside!" Reapermon boomed.

"I won't let you harm them!" Gallantmon raised his lance. **"Lightning-"**

"**Grim Slasher!"** Reapermon lunged forward before Gallantmon could attack. Reapermon continued attacking, unleashing an endless onslaught, giving Gallantmon no chance to defend or counter. Gallantmon continued trying, but Reapermon was just too fast for him. Gallantmon panted heavily, forced down onto one knee in pain. Reapermon continued laughing as he attacked, extinguishing the children's last hopes of victory.

"What can we do?" Mimi cried. "He's too strong!"

Gallantmon shut his eyes, admitting the same thing to himself.

"I've let everyone down…" Gallantmon murmured.

"Give up, and I may spare some of you," Reapermon taunted. "There's no use fighting! Give up now, or die!"

Something inside Gallantmon ignited. A final flame lit up, sending a new burst of energy through him. A bright light lit Gallantmon up, lifting him into the air. Reapermon shielded his eyes from the light, groaning in agony. Gallantmon felt power coursing through him.

"**Gallantmon, Mode Change to…Crimson Mode!"**

"What is this? So…Bright!" Reapermon shouted in pain.

"I feel…strong again!" WarGreymon felt a sudden surge of power flow through him.

"Me too," MetalGarurumon added. "I've never felt this kind of power before!"

"Let's go get him!" The two said in unison, as their bodies started glowing brightly.

"**WarGreymon! MetalGarurumon! DNA-Digivolve to…Omnimon!"**

"I feel it too! Let's help them!" Imperialdramon felt Gallantmon Crimson Mode's energy flow through him as well.

"**Imperialdramon, Mode Change to…Fighter Mode!"**

"Don't count us out yet either!" MegaGargomon joined in too with his batteries recharged.

Reapermon now found himself staring down four extremely powerful Digimon.

"Finally, a worthy adversary!" Reapermon directed his comment to Gallantmon, blatantly ignoring the other three. "But a wasted effort. I shall still rise victorious! **Bone Duster!**"

Gallantmon effortlessly swiped the ball of fire away, making Reapermon more than a bit nervous.

"Impossible!" Reapermon stepped back, surprised. "I am the most powerful! Me alone! **BURNING CYCLONE!**"

Everyone braced themselves for a second whirlwind of destruction, but found that it never came. Instead, Gallantmon used the time Reapermon took spinning up to launch an attack.

"**Crimson Light!"**

Reapermon was unable to avoid the attack, being trapped in the middle of his own vortex. The blast sent him skyward in a daze.

"And…pull!" MegaGargomon shouted, raising his arms to aim at Reapermon. **"Mega Barrage!"**

Each and every missile impacted Reapermon with devastating force, keeping him in the air, even sending him higher. Omnimon lifted both arms, aiming the WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon heads directly at the falling Digimon.** "Double Torrent!"**

The fire and ice blasts exploded in unison as Imperialdramon linked the Positron Laser into his draconic chestplate, and unleashed an enormous beam of destructive energy. **"Giga Crusher!"**

The beam enveloped Reapermon in a bright light, forcing everyone on the ground to avert their eyes. The beam dissipated, and Reapermon, fighting for strength to continue, plummeted to the ground.

With a loud thud, Reapermon laid face-down in the dirt, struggling to move. Finally, he summoned enough strength to stand, but his balance swayed, forcing him on his knees.

"We will not let you hurt our friends!" The four said in unison, before preparing their attacks. "This battle has gone on long enough!"

"_So this is what true fear is like,"_ Reapermon thought to himself. _"It seems every warrior must fall, and I am no exception..."_

"**Supreme Cannon!" "Gargo Missile!" "Positron Laser!" "Royal Saber!"** Each of the four launched their attacks directly at Reapermon, who knelt in the center of them. Reapermon lowered his head in defeat. The four attacks connected simultaneously, causing a massive explosion, rocking the ground beneath the Digidestined's feet.

* * *

><p>As the smoke cleared, eight figures lay unconscious around a massive crater, and Reapermon was gone for good. Terriermon and Henry were the first to awaken, too exhausted to move.<p>

"Okay," Terriermon spoke loudly, but weakly as he rose to his feet. "I don't care how much you ask, or how much you offer me in return. I will never, _ever,_ do that ever again."

"Agreed." Henry replied, equally worn-out.

Tai, Matt, Davis, and Ken ran over to their Digimon, finding them to be in about the same state as Henry and Terriermon. Renamon had since made her way over to Rika, who clearly wasn't as calm and collected as she appeared from a distance. She was frozen in place, unsure of exactly what to do, if anything. They had beaten Reapermon, but she didn't feel any more at ease with herself as Renamon tried to get through to her.

"Rika? Rika, are you hurt?" Renamon didn't really know what to do. Physically she was fine, but inside she was locked up. And mental health wasn't exactly Renamon's forte. Henry came over too, wondering exactly what was up with Rika too. And then he remembered exactly what had happened in the last half-hour, and decided to see what had ensnared Rika's gaze.

Henry turned around and looked Takato straight in the eye.

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER FIFTEEN~<strong>

**Whew, this one was a doozy. I solemnly promise to make a determined effort to ensure the next (and final) chapter won't take nearly this long. Unfortunately, I cannot guarantee this, as problems I previously thought dealt with seem to be coming back to fuck with my head again. Until next time, thank you all for reading, reviewing, and all-around being very tolerant and understanding of me. If you have any questions, don't be afraid to PM me, or meet me in person if you somehow know who I am. Only one chapter to go!**


	16. Conclusion

**Two years. It's been almost two full years since I updated this. Admittedly, I kinda forgot about it, it slipped through the cracks as a lot of stuff was going on. I've got a new job, I've graduated high school, I'm in university, and a lot has changed. Then one night, I dusted off my old netbook to get some banking info off of it and I came across my fanfic project files. Felt like a blast from the past. Curious, I logged into the account and found I was still periodically getting messages about my unfinished fic. "Fuck it," I thought, "I'll finish it."**

**So here we are. Almost two years since the last chapter, and almost three since I started this fucking thing, let's end this once and for all. Finally.**

* * *

><p>If Only They Could: Chapter 16 - Conclusion<p>

Silent. That was the only word that could describe the atmosphere surrounding Rika and Takato as they stared at each other from across the battlefield. The tension invaded the others as well, none of them wanting any attention drawn to them in this moment. Renamon eyed Rika cautiously as she stood, frozen in eye contact with the boy who, up until a few minutes ago, was, for all intents and purposes, 'dead.' Only someone with a complete ignorance of social understanding would interfere with this situation as it unfolded.

"TAKATOMON!"

Guilmon was one such person. Running up full tilt and tackling Takato to the ground, hugging him madly, it snapped the group out of it, and Henry ran off to greet his friend as well. Just as Guilmon finally let up on Takato, Terriermon latched onto Takato facehugger style, knocking him to the ground again. As the Digidestined slowly approached to meet the new arrival, Tai looked back to see Rika and Renamon remaining where they stood before, Rika still frozen where she stood. Disregarding it as shock, Tai joined up again and welcomed Takato with the others.

"So you're the Takato I've been hearing so much about," Matt said cheekily as he hoisted him up from the ground. "I must say, coming outta that Digi-Egg was like nothing I'd ever seen before!"

"Yeah," Takato replied, "I've been known to surprise on occasion."

"What was it like?" Izzy questioned immediately.

Takato thought about it for a minute, before replying. "Cramped." The others laughed as Takato dusted himself off. "So what happened anyway?" he asked Henry, "why was I turned into a Digi-Egg?"

"Remember back when we were fighting the D-Reaper?" Henry asked.

Takato nodded and shuddered as his thoughts drifted back to the incident in question, where the entire world was almost lost to a rogue computer program consuming and destroying everything in its path.

"Remember when Dobermon gave us the ability to Biomerge in the real world?" Henry followed up.

"Yeah, it was the only reason we beat the D-Reaper at all. Without it, we would've been creamed," Takato replied.

"Well, it's impossible for data and flesh to join together, so Dobermon actually converted us into data permanently," Henry finished.

Takato paused and furrowed his brow, pondering something. After a few moments, he looked up to Henry. "So, in a way, we're Digimon?" he asked finally, with a childlike glint in his eyes.

Henry sighed internally and nodded to his friend, not surprised that was his only question on the matter.

Takato was about to continue questioning when he caught a glimpse of red out of the corner of his eye. He turned and saw Rika and Renamon standing off in the distance, staring at him.

"What's she doing all the way over there?" he asked.

Henry shrugged. "Let's go find out," he said, and the two set off in her direction.

"Rika!" Takato shouted, "Did you miss me?" he added jokingly. Rika simply continued staring in a stupor, completely unresponsive.

"I expected a few different reactions from here," Henry started, "but catatonic wasn't one of them."

"Nor did I, but she seems fine biologically," Renamon answered, "She should snap out of it soon."

"_I hope so," _Takato thought, _"She looks like she saw a ghost. Well, I guess she did kind of see a ghost."_

Renamon looked concerned as she continued trying to coax a response out Rika. _"With how she has been sealing herself off more and more as we've journeyed here, I expected her to be reclusive at first, but I didn't expect her to just shut down like this," _she thought, _"Please snap out of it soon, Rika."_

Finally, after several minutes of an excellent statue impersonation, Rika blinked twice and slowly returned to the world of the living.

"You alright?" Henry asked cautiously.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Rika replied hesitantly. "Sorry about that, I was miles away."

"No worries, you're back now, so everything's okay again," Agumon chimed in cheerfully.

Rika smiled half-heartedly and turned back to Renamon, who nodded her head ever so slightly as a show of support. Then, she bit the bullet and turned back to the man of the hour: Takato.

"…Hey," Rika said softly, unable to find any other words in the maelstrom of her mind.

"Hey there," Takato grinned his trademark grin. "How have you been?"

"Not too bad I suppose," Rika said as she re-armed her emotional defences.

"Oh," Takato said flatly, before adding, "Well, I'm not surprised. You were always the tough one, right?" Takato chuckled to punctuate his joke.

"Yeah," Rika said after an awkward pause, "I suppose so."

Realizing the situation would only get more uncomfortable from there for the group, Henry distracted them. "I suppose we should get on the horn with Yamaki then," he shattered the silence, "he'll be glad to hear you're alright."

"Yamaki?" Takato thought aloud, "How did you guys get here, anyway? And where is 'here' at all? Why am I here? How did I get here?" Takato pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. "My head hurts."

"Well, don't worry," Tentomon said reassuringly, "We've got plenty of time to explain."

* * *

><p>The group set out after collecting their gear, scattered by the battle with Reapermon, and settled into their usual travelling groups, with the exception of Tai, Izzy, and Tentomon, who walked with Takato and Henry along the way, pestering him with questions, as well as answering his.<p>

"So, you managed to create a Digimon?" Izzy asked.

"Yeah, it just sort of happened. I draw a lot when I'm bored, and one of the things I drew was Guilmon. I really like Agumon, he's always been really cool, so I guess he was my inspiration, but then I made him red, added spikes, and attacks, and pretty soon he was his own Digimon." Takato got caught up in his own memories as he told the story. "Man, I was so excited when he appeared, I thought I was dreaming!"

"He just appeared?" Izzy asked, "Just like that, after you drew him?"

"Well, not exactly," Takato clarified, reminiscing about the day. "I, kinda, swiped his drawing through my D-Arc, and then he appeared."

"But it was just a drawing, on a piece of paper. Why would it produce a Digimon? Let alone a Digimon _you _created!" Izzy bombarded Takato with questions.

"I really don't know to be perfectly honest," Takato chuckled, "It just sort of happened, and now here he is." Guilmon smiled a great big toothy grin to punctuate Takato's point.

"Prodigious!" Izzy exclaimed. "Just when I think I'm beginning to understand the Digital World, I find out something like this!"

Henry smirked as he listened to the conversation while tapping away at the communicator in his hand.

* * *

><p>Janyu smiled wide as he read his son's most recent message:<p>

_**We got him! He's safe and sound!**_

"Yamaki! Get over here, they've found him!" He called out from his office. Within seconds, Yamaki had rushed over to his desk and looked over his shoulder at the message, letting a large smirk through his stone visage.

"Excellent. Tell him we're almost ready to send the ark down, we just need his location. Tell him to find a spot in a broad clearing, if possible, for an easy landing." Yamaki directed.

"Already on it," Janyu said, as he typed rapidly into his console.

"_We're not out of the woods yet," _Yamaki thought to himself, _"but it looks like we're almost done."_

* * *

><p>"Anywhere nearby with a nice big clearing? Henry asked Tai. "They're sending down the rescue ship soon, they just need somewhere safe to land."<p>

Tai pondered for a moment, then lit up. "How about back at the lake?" He suggested. "That island in the middle is pretty big, and we could probably push the trolley if you needed more room."

"That'll work great, I'll tell them to hang on for the coordinates in a few hours then," Henry said as he typed.

"Do you think Rika's gonna be okay?" Tai asked, motioning to the back of the group, where Rika and Renamon walked twenty paces behind everyone else. "She's been awfully quiet."

Takato shrugged. "She's never been the most social person, it's just not who she is. I doubt any of this is more than just another errand to run in the Digital World to her."

"I dunno," Tai replied, "I would have imagined she'd be more excited to see you after all the crap she went through on the way here," Tai chuckled warmly.

Takato raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean? She's usually pretty level-headed, albeit a bit grumpy. Was she that bad?"

Tai laughed a little bit, before clarifying. "She was getting pretty upset, and she was stressing how quickly we need to find you. She even went off on her own in the middle of the night last night, without any directions, to try and get here sooner!"

Takato chuckled a little in response. "That sounds like Rika, always putting her friends before herself. But I suppose you're right, she's acting awfully weird, even for her."

Rika watched as Takato and Tai turned and looked at her again, before laughing to each other. "I wonder what they're talking about," Rika said to nobody in particular. This being the first time she had spoken in the two hours since they left, it startled Renamon a little bit.

"Well, it looks to be about you in some capacity, given how often they've been turning around to look at you," Renamon replied. "I'd wager they're a little concerned."

"Concerned?" Rika asked. "About what?"

You're significantly less interactive than you were even four hours ago," Renamon quipped. "It's no surprise they noticed."

Rika smirked a little at Renamon's comment. "I suppose you're not wrong about that, but it's only because I have no idea what to say,"

"What do you mean?"

"How am I supposed to talk to Takato? 'Hey, thanks for saving my life, hope this squares my debts for rescues,' or some bullshit like that?" Rika asked, making Renamon chuckle slightly.

"You've got a bit of a point there Rika," Renamon said, "but I'm confident you'll figure out what to say."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Rika said, before turning her head and returning to silence. Renamon breathed a sigh of relief, confident that Rika had at least returned from the dark place Takato's absence had left her. But she knew it was still an uphill battle, and Rika would need to break new ground to get back to her former self around him.

* * *

><p>"Looks like we've arrived," Rio said excitedly as the small trolley on the lake came into view once again. "I'll send Yamaki our coordinates," Henry added as he pulled out his communicator.<p>

"Cool," Takato said, following Henry to the edge of the lake. "So who are those guys? And where are we?" He asked.

"The Seventh Plane of the Digital World," Henry replied, "Hypnos didn't even know it existed until recently. It's its own full world, and these guys are kinda like this world's Tamers."

"That makes sense," Takato furrowed his brow in thought, "but those guys…hmm…" he trailed off.

"Hmm?" Henry asked, wondering where he was going with this train of thought.

"I dunno, I just feel like we've met them before," he said. "They seem awfully familiar." Eventually he shrugged, admitting defeat. "I dunno, maybe I'm just crazy, heh heh."

Henry smiled. "Maybe."

"Any response from Yamaki yet?" Rika approached quietly.

"Yeah, the ark's just about ready to move," Henry peered at the dimly lit monitor of the communicator, "it should be here in a few hours or so. Wanna go meet the rest of the group Takato?"

"Sure," Takato replied with a smile, as they walked off to the rest of the travellers.

After several introductions, Takato became acquainted with the rest of the Digidestined and their Digimon, and the group settled down to set up camp for the night, as the sun glowed a warm orange just over the treeline. Takato's stomach growled, which surprised him given his experience in his Digital World, but chalked it up to one of the seventh plane's many mysteries as he watched Joe and Matt cook the food over a campfire they had built. The Digidestined set up camp around the campfire, as the Tamers milled about, talking with them while waiting for their ride home. Rika had opened up a little bit more around the others once Takato settled in a little bit, as long as her mind stayed away from the subject of Takato. Otherwise, everything seemed to be getting more or less back to normal, something which cheered up the other Tamers dramatically, although her continuing ignoring of Takato was certainly curious.

"Seriously, did I do something to piss her off or something?" Takato asked. "Other than die, I mean. She's been avoiding me since I woke up."

"Nothing I can think of," Henry replied.

"Although with Rika, we never really know what _would_ make her angry," Terriermon added, earning a rap on his head from Henry's knuckles, which failed to drive the point home, "I mean, she's angry for no reason whenever she wants, what makes this any different?"

Despite it being a joke, Takato still thought hard about it. Normally when Rika was angry, she made it perfectly clear to the subject (and those around them) that she was mad, and why, but she was completely cold to Takato now, which worried him. It wasn't something she had done before, so he thought perhaps it was far worse than her just being angry at him. Takato looked over to Rika again, catching her eyes, and she immediately turned away, slightly flustered. Takato raised an eyebrow, but before he could question further, he heard Tai call from the Digidestined.

"How much time do you guys have?" Tai called out, "Wanna come hang out and keep warm? It gets cold pretty quick around here."

"Sure!" Henry called back, seeing nothing better to do for the next couple of hours while they waited, "come on, guys," he gestured to the other Tamers, who followed him and Terriermon to the campfire.

* * *

><p>Yamaki had never felt such a rewarding sensation as he hung up the phone after a brief conversation with the Matsuki's. Their raw excitement was just the pick-me-up he needed to keep going a little longer after fifty five hours without sleep. He picked up the phone and dialed Rika's mother.<p>

"Hello, Nonaka residence," Yamaki recognized the voice of Rumiko.

"It's Yamaki, have you got a minute?" Yamaki answered, smirking a little.

"Sure, what's up?" Rumiko asked anxiously. "Has something happened? Is Rika okay?"

Yamaki took a deep breath and answered briefly. "They got him."

"I never doubted them for a second," Rumiko said cheerfully. "When are they coming back?"

"If everything goes according to plan, they'll be back home around six thirty tonight." Yamaki answered.

"Thank you," Rumiko said before hanging up the phone and chuckling to herself happily and calling for her mother, Seiko.

* * *

><p>Matt almost choked on his rice stifling a laugh as Takato finished recounting a story about Guilmon wandering around his school in a cardboard box, scaring the daylights out of anyone who peered inside.<p>

"I suppose I should be thanking him though," Takato chuckled. "After all, that was one of the reasons I met up with Henry, after he saw Guilmon running around."

Henry laughed and spoke up. "I suppose it was preferable to how we met Rika,"

Rika's eyes darted to Henry, who, seeing her glare, lost his smile quickly.

"How did you meet Rika?" Tai asked, but Henry and Takato suddenly weren't in a very chatty mood, having clammed up completely. Confused, Tai looked over to Rika, who sighed and spoke up.

"I wasn't as nice of a person back then as I am today." She said irritably, ushering in an awkward silence.

"…Well, did Tai tell you about how _we _allmet?" Matt said to defuse the tension.

"No, actually, what happen-" Takato started, before being cut off by the beeping of the communicator. "Henry, what's up?" Takato asked.

After reading the reply carefully, Henry replied, "It's almost here. T minus six minutes. We probably ought to be able to see it soon."

Sure enough, looking up at the dimly lit sky show a small figure moving through the sky, tethered seemingly to the heavens above by a glowing cable of data.

"There's our ticket out of this mess," Rika said.

The group watched in awe as the Ark made its final descent, landing several metres away, precisely the coordinates Henry had punched into the communicator a few hours ago. As the hatch on the back opened up, looking not unlike an alien spacecraft making first contact with the people of Earth, the Tamers stepped closer, followed closely by the Digidestined.

"That, is SO COOL!" Davis shouted in excitement.

The Tamers turned and faced the Digidestined once again, and smiled widely.

"Thank you guys so much for all your help," Henry said loudly, "I don't think we would've made it if it weren't for you."

"Any time, it was our pleasure!" Sora responded, "We'd love it if you came and visited again sometime!"

Takato grinned and the four Tamers waved goodbye as they boarded the craft with their Digimon, with Cyberdramon de-digivolving to Monodramon to make room. At precisely five o' clock, according to Henry's communicator, the door re-sealed, and the Ark slowly lifted into the air again.

"They were certainly interesting," Henry said as the Digidestined faded from view.

"Yeah," Takato snorted in agreement. "You think we'll ever see them again?"

"I dunno," Henry said, "but I hope so."

"It was really weird seeing Ken again," Ryo said, scratching his neck, "like a blast from the past, you know?"

"Why didn't you tell us you'd saved the Digital World before?" Rika piped up, sounding annoyed.

"I dunno, it wasn't a really big deal," Ryo chuckled. "I didn't want you to think I was bragging about it or something,"

"Because you _never _brag about anything, do you?" Rika rolled her eyes.

Watching the bickering from across the room, Henry chuckled and turned to Takato. "Like an old married couple, right?"

Takato snorted "Yeah."

The remainder of the trip mostly followed the same format, a bit of bickering here and there, discussion of the adventure with Takato who had missed most of it, and some awkward small talk as they ran out of things to talk about. By the end, the eight were mostly quiet, the occasional shift in position or cough being the only noise overtop of the rumble of the Ark. Takato took this time to ensure his thoughts were in order, and to think about the events that led up to his 'death.'

"_You idiot! Why did you do it? Why did you save me like that?" _Takato remembered Rika's sobs as he faded away. "_TAKATO!"_

"_Why did I do it? I mean, I would've done it for any of my friends, or anyone for that matter, but why her?" _he thought to himself. _"There was no time to consider the consequences, I just did it; it was a reflex. Why her of all people? Why not someone who doesn't hate me, for starters? Or someone not fifty times as rich as me? Someone…" _Takato sighed.

"_Someone I'd have a chance with."_

* * *

><p>"<em>You know, you're not making this ride any less uncomfortable," <em>Rika thought as she listened to several 'Jeri's' chanting _"Tell him! Tell him! Tell him!" _in her head.

"_Yeah, well you know what we're saying, and you know how to make us stop," _'Jeri' teased. _"Just tell him you love him, and we'll go away forever, tee hee!"_

"_I already agreed to that, didn't I!? Why are you still here?" _Rika screamed internally.

"_Just reminding you," _Jeri taunted. _"Because you're not gonna do it."_

"_So what if I don't? Then everything stays the same and nothing is ruined by me saying something stupid!"_

"_But it's not stupid, he loves you too, you can see it in his eyes!" _Rika looked up momentarily and caught Takato's eye contact for a fraction of a second before he broke off and looked the other way, blushing slightly, as if to punctuate 'Jeri's' claims. _"You'll drive yourself crazy if you don't!"_

"_You're already driving me crazy with this incessant rambling of yours!"_

'Jeri' giggled. _"See? You've proven my point." _And with that, Jeri was gone once again, leaving Rika nearly trembling with frustration. Fortunately, a deep rumbling, followed by a faint light streaming in through the windows of the Ark were enough to snap Rika out of it.

The rumbling intensified to an almost deafening roar around them as they braced themselves against the sides of the Ark, until it finally ceased. A deafening quiet filled the atmosphere as the hatch, after what seemed like an eternity, slowly opened, allowing the deep orange glow of the sunset to fill the small room as the Tamers exited.

As their eyes adjusted, the Tamers' sights settled on the seven figures standing before them: Takehiro and Mie Matsuki, Janyu and Suzie Wong, Rumiko Nonaka, Seiko Hata, with Mitsuo Yamaki standing behind them, sporting his signature sunglasses. Ryo moved off to the side to allow the others their reunions undisturbed, he and Monodramon smiling warmly. Takato was almost immediately smothered by his mother and father. Unsure of what to do, he simply accepted their embrace and tuned out his mother's tearful scolding. Rika simply waved and smiled kindly at her mother and grandmother, greeting them each with a small hug. Henry earned a firm handshake and a high-five, from his father and sister, respectively.

Takato turned and saw Yamaki, who flashed a smile and a small nod of acknowledgement, which Takato reflected in earnest, before another earful of reprimanding was heaped onto the pile by his mother. Henry smirked as he waved goodbye to Takato and Rika, who did the same as they left for their respective houses with their families, as Ryo and Monodramon headed for home on their own.

As he settled his head down onto his pillow for the first time in ages, Takato thought one last time about his feelings for Rika and his actions in the AeroVeedramon battle. _"I guess love makes people do strange things," _he concluded, before drifting off to sleep with a warm smile on his face.

* * *

><p>"<em>What…hap-pened?"<em>

"_You idiot! Why did you do it? Why did you save me like that?" Rika sobbed._

"_Be-cause, Ri…ka, I…" Takato tried to say. "I… I… I…"_

"_You what?" Rika asked, eyes butted with tears._

"_I... I… I… lo… I lo… was all he could muster before he faded completely, his data floating away._

"_TAKATO!"_

Rika shot up on her futon, breathing heavily, sweat drenching her face and pyjamas. _"Okay, okay, okay, calm down," _she thought to herself, _"I'm in my room, I'm safe, Takato's fine, it was just another nightmare."_ Rika's breathing slowed back to normal and she felt her heart stop pounding in her ear. _"Everything is fine again." _She thought, before seeing Renamon materialize out of the shadows.

"Rika, is everything alright? I heard you calling out," Renamon asked, a concerned tone breaking through her monotone voice.

"Yeah," Rika replied, "just a bad dream."

"Are you sure? Is there anything you want to talk about?" Renamon asked, holding a sliver of hope she might actually try to talk out her problems as opposed to bottling them up as usual.

"No, it's fine, I'm fine," Rika kept repeating, not putting Renamon at ease, but assuring her there was no immediate threat to Rika's safety.

"Very well, good night." Renamon said before disappearing into the shadows once more.

* * *

><p><em>Two weeks later<em>

* * *

><p>Takato sighed as he heaved his backpack over his shoulder and began the long walk home. His return to school had been full of welcome and cheer, but now that everything had settled down, Ms. Asagi, in her infinite benevolence, gave Takato a few days' extension on his missing homework from the period wherein he was trapped in the Digital World. Naturally, the next few days didn't look very good for Takato. As he stepped out of the final crosswalk, bakery in sight, he felt his pocket rumble, indicating a text. Picking up the pace, Takato jogged the rest of the way home with his enormous pile of book in tow, before climbing his staircase two at a time and finally heaving the sack onto his bottom bunk. Breathing a sigh of relief and cracking his spine as he stretched backwards, Takato pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and flicked it open, eyeing the indicator light.<p>

_**Are you free tonight…We need to talk**_

_**Sent from: Nonaka, Rika**_

Takato raised an eyebrow as he read who it was from. Today marked the fourteenth day since his last direct conversation with Rika. She was around at school, and when they hung out with the others, but she never addressed him directly, something she had never done before. So, Takato warily typed out his response:

_**Tonight free after seven…work and dinner haha**_

Takato set his phone down and immediately heard it buzz on his desk:

_**That works…hideout?**_

_**Sure, see you then :)**_

_**yeah :)**_

"_Maybe she was just having a bad day," _Takato thought to himself. _"She seems pretty normal now, although I wonder what she wants to talk about." _Takato sat at his desk, sliding his pens and papers aside as he nuzzled his head into his arms and let his mind wander for a while, wondering what Rika need to say.

* * *

><p>Rika shut her phone and collapsed onto her futon once again, kicking herself mentally as she did so. <em>"Why am I doing this?" <em>she thought. _"Why why why why WHY am I doing this? I have nothing to gain, I'm just gonna make a fool of myself!"_ Sighing exasperatedly, Rika sat up, grabbing a magazine to leaf through idly as her mind ran rampant with the same questions over and over in her head.

"_What am I going to say? What will he say? How do I approach a conversation like this? How is he going to react? Why am I doing this? How do I do this? Should I be straight about it, or should I make stupid small talk first? What the fuck do I do!? Ugh!"_

"Rika! Dinner!" Rika heard as she snapped out of it. Glancing at her clock, she marvelled at how two hours had passed in her musings. Getting up and adjusting her hair, she left for dinner.

* * *

><p>Takato threw some deodorant on and switched into a clean shirt after work, ensuring no flour remained on his face as he eyed his reflection in the bathroom mirror. He smiled as he saw himself, not the little kid he was before, when his life changed dramatically and he was thrust into his role as Digimon Tamer. The boy he was had grown into a fine young man, a brave young man, who would do anything to help his friends, as evidenced by the events that occurred a few weeks ago. He thought about how he, and all the other Tamers had changed since back then, but also at how similar they all were. They were all so different, and yet so familiar to him. Takato looked down at his watch.<p>

"_Six thirty-five, I should get going," _he thought to himself, before hearing his mother call up from the bakery.

"Takato! You've got a visitor!" Mie called out. Takato bounded down the stairs to see Rika, clad in a heart t-shirt and black jacket and jeans, waiting for him. Catching his eye for an instant, Rika immediately looked away.

"Oh," Takato said, "I thought we were meeting at seven at the hideout," he said, confused.

"Yeah," Rika said with a shrug, not making eye contact. "I figured it'd just be easier to come and get you," she said awkwardly, staring at her feet.

"Well alright then," Takato said, "shall we?" Takato motioned for the door.

"Sure."

* * *

><p>The two set off from the bakery, walking along the back roads towards the park. The glow of the sun setting over the treeline lighting the way. The faint breeze blowing through and the rustling of leaves on the trees were the only sounds to be heard along the way, as the two remained silent. Rika continued to avoid Takato's gaze, perplexing Takato further. Takato thought of nothing along the way but what it could possibly be that Rika need to talk to him about, and Rika thought of what exactly to say. Eventually, the small concrete building in the trees came into view, and the walk was over. Rika and Takato sat down on the cold floor of the hideout side by side, and sat in silence for several minutes.<p>

"So," Takato awkwardly broke the silence, "what's going on? Sounded kinda important in your text."

Rika shifted uncomfortably, partly from the hard floor and partly due to Takato. "I… Um… I'm not sure how to phrase this, but… I… Hmm…" Rika desperately searched for the right words, but sadly, she was unable to find them.

"You can tell me," Takato took a comforting tone, "what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," Rika started, arranging her sentence piece by piece in her mind. "It's just, something I was wondering, you know, since we got back."

"Yeah?" Takato raised an eyebrow, "and what's that?"

"That day, when we were fighting the AeroVeedramon…" Rika paused and steeled her nerves as best as she could. "And you, you know, pushed me out of the way…" Takato realized what she was asking and froze up a little bit, remembering full well what he had intended to say with his 'dying' breath.

"_I… I… I… I lo… I lo…"_

"Anyway, I wanted to ask, why did you do it? Why did you push me out of the way and take it yourself?" Rika finally asked.

Takato sat quietly, pondering the best answer. Part of him wanted to finish the answer he attempted back then, but he knew it wasn't a good idea, so he settled for, "You're my friend. I wanted to protect you, so I pushed you out of the way, I didn't really think about it, it just happened. I'd do that for any of my friends."

Rika frowned, but nodded in acknowledgement, staring at her shoes. Takato blinked twice and looked at Rika.

"Why don't you look at me anymore?"

"What do you mean?" Rika asked, but Takato continued.

"Look me in the eye."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Why does it matter?" Rika asked with an irritated tone.

"Because you're my best friend, and you won't look at me! What did I do to piss you off so badly?" Takato asked, frustrated.

At that moment, something snapped inside Rika. Something that, until that moment, had been holding back all of the emotions caused by Takato's death, all of the grief and pain Rika suffered as a result of his actions. Rika turned and looked Takato square in the eye, and Takato was shocked to see such a burning rage building up, and Rika let it loose.

"Because the only thing I can see is someone that'll kill himself just to keep me safe!" She exploded. Takato leaned back, as if physically pushed by the force of Rika's anger. "All I see now is someone who would throw his life away for me! That's stupid! Why risk it all for something like that!?"

Takato was annoyed by the insinuation, and fired back, "So I shouldn't care about my friends? I shouldn't try to protect them to the best of my abilities?"

"If you would just _listen, _for one fucking second," Rika added as much venom as she could to her inflection, "I'm not saying you shouldn't care about your friends, _Gogglehead, _I'm saying you should think about how they would feel! Did you at all consider how _I _felt, huh!? I had to watch you _die_, Takato. You died on the ground right in front of me, and there was _nothing _I could do about it! _NOTHING!_ And you were dead, because of ME! Because _I _was caught in that situation, it was MY fault! You were dead because of me, and there was nothing I could do about it. Did you think about how _that _would make me feel, huh!?" Rika shouted in Takato's face.

"I… It wasn't your fault, Rika," Takato started. "I made that decision, not you!"

"But I was the reason you had to make it! If I had fought better, and not been caught off guard, you wouldn't have had to-"

Takato grabbed Rika's hand with his. "It wasn't your fault, Rika," was all he said, and he watched as Rika collapsed, burying her head in his shoulder, exhausted.

"I… I know what it feels like now, to lose you," Rika said, so quietly Takato almost couldn't hear her right next to him. "And I can't take that again. I can't lose you again, Takato."

Takato patted Rika's shoulder with his other hand. "You don't have to worry about that, he said softly. Rika raised her head and looked at him. "It's pretty clear I'm immortal anyway, right?" Takato flashed a cheeky grin, and Rika smiled as a result. She punched him in the shoulder with her free hand as she composed herself, followed by a light-hearted "Oh, shut up," making Takato chuckle.

Takato looked into Rika's eyes deeply again. "I promise, I'll always be there for you," he said with a warm smile. Rika was warmed just looking at it, and her nerves calmed as she breathed deeply.

"Thanks," was all she said in response.

The two sat in silence for a few minutes, but Takato soon broke it:

"You know, I've never stopped admiring you," Takato said at last.

"For what?" Rika asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You really care about us," Takato started, "me and the other Tamers. You've come a long way since the girl I'd met," Takato chuckled and Rika blushed slightly. "You were pissed at me for putting your safety before my own, but the reason you were upset was because you cared so much about your friends."

Rika suddenly shifted around nervously. "Well," she started, "I suppose that wasn't the only reason…"

Takato cocked his head in confusion. "What else then?"

Rika fidgeted uncomfortably for a few moments.

"Rika?" Takato asked, confused, "what's the ma-"

Takato's question was cut short when something warm and soft had connected with his lips. Takato's brain shut down and for a brief moment, nothing mattered in this world as Rika kissed him. On impulse, Rika had quickly leaned in and connected, before either of them knew what was happening, and now the two sat together, kissing passionately. In that moment, neither of them felt anything but warmth and contentment. Slowly, Takato regained his mental faculties, and then he quickly broke off the kiss. Rika's heart sank as the outcome she dreaded seemed to be coming to fruition in front of her.

"Rika…" Takato started, looking apologetically into Rika's eyes. "You don't… You don't need to do that, you don't owe me anything."

"_Owe him? Why on earth would I owe him?" _Rika thought, before saying "What are you talking about?"

Takato was now the one avoiding eye contact, staring at his feet and fidgeting. "You don't have to do that just because I saved you or anything…" he said, awkwardly.

"What do you mean?" Rika asked, confusion in her eyes. "I wasn't doing anything I… well… didn't, already kinda want to do, or anything."

Takato simply continued staring into the concrete floor, with only some of his babbling making any sense. "You told me you feel responsible for me dying, and now that I'm back, you think you owe me this, because I love you and I know that you're-"

Rika's mind went blank, not receiving any more input from Takato's babbling as she ran that one short phrase over and over in her mind: _I love you. _While she was admittedly quite elated, she was remaining cautious, because something was clearly bothering him, and until she was certain of what it was, she was not going to say anything to confuse him more.

"What are you talking about? You're not making any sense Takato," Rika made sure to address him by his real name to make sure he knew she was serious. "Stop rambling and start making sense. Did you just say-"

Takato sighed, "Yeah, but I know that's not what you want to hear, so you can pretend that never happened if you want."

Rika was completely at a loss for words. _"But if he… if he loves me, then what's the problem?"_ she thought to herself, trying to decipher his incoherence.

"…because I know you don't think of me that way, so it's best to just let it slide and forget about all this bullshit…"

"_He doesn't think I'd think of him that way?" _Rika thought. Admittedly, Takato was never as cocky as Ryo, but she never thought of him as self-conscious or anything. He'd always been pretty confident in his own abilities. _"Now, how do I change that?"_ Rika was never very good at emotions, and she still had some profound problems handling her own, let alone someone else's. Thankfully, she was well known for stubbornly brute-forcing her way through her problems, something which she decided to put to use in this situation.

Takato was again interrupted mid-sentence with a kiss from the redhead, but this one was much deeper, and more passionate, halting all higher forms of brain function from the goggle-wearing boy. The two shared the kiss for what seemed to the both of them to be an eternity, but Takato eventually again retracted.

"Rika," he said again, "what are you doing? You don't have to do anything, it's okay," he reassured her.

Rika took Takato's hand in her own, and looked him deep in the eyes, removing every emotional safeguard she had for just a moment. In that moment, Takato saw into her very soul, and saw nervousness and warmth.

"I know," Rika said.

Takato looked at Rika in disbelief. "You…" he stammered, "But, you couldn't possibly-"

Rika sighed in exasperation. "Takato, do you trust me?"

Takato quickly nodded his head. "More than anyone."

Rika looked at him a bit more sternly, and summoned every ounce of courage she had. "I am absolutely terrible at all this mushy gushy crap, okay? But I'm trying my best here, because I love you too, and I think you just can't believe that," she said with a somewhat serious tone. "…even though you want to," she added.

Takato's eyes widened, and babble-mode engaged. "Wait, but you're, well, you, and I'm me!"

"Yeah, so?" Rika said, with no hint of irony in her voice.

"It doesn't make any sense."

Rika traced Takato's face with her palm, leaning in for a kiss, then holding him steady in her gaze. "I love you, so you're just gonna have to deal with that."

As the gears turned in Takato's head, he slowly came to realize how serious Rika was being right now, and a large smile appeared across his face. He leaned in and gave Rika a kiss of his own, sending Rika hurtling through her own elation. "I love you too," he said, smiling warmly.

Rika smiled right back, and turned and nuzzled into Takato's shoulder. Takato put his arm around her, and the two just sat in the hideout, looking out at the stars for an hour in silence.

* * *

><p>"Thank you," Rika said softly, breaking the silence and waking a half-asleep Takato.<p>

"For what?" Takato asked.

"I never thanked you for saving my life," Rika said, "so thank you."

"You're welcome." Takato said, staring off into the distance.

"But if you ever die again, after we come and rescue you, I'm gonna kill you for real," Rika warned, semi-playfully.

Takato kissed Rika on her forehead and smiled. "No promises."

* * *

><p><strong>~END OF CHAPTER SIXTEEN; END OF SERIES~<strong>

**Merry Christmas guys! Here's a gift for you all! I'm terribly sorry that this took almost two years to finish this, but it's finally done. Man, I'm getting all nostalgic and shit now, it's been so long since I've done this, but it's now finished! Concluding this series has gotten me back in the writing spirit, so if you guys like this (hopefully my writing style has only improved in the past two years), maybe I'll write some more, although I'll take on smaller projects to start, to avoid another incident like this one. Once again, I'm deeply sorry to leave you guys hanging like I did, but I'm also thankful for your incredible patience. Until next time!**

**-CS**


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